


tell me is it so wrong (even if we fall in love?)

by dj jiggle juice (therestisconfetti)



Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Side Staubrey, bc apparently some people get rly upset if i don't tag this :/ sorry :/, fake dating au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-21
Updated: 2019-01-12
Packaged: 2019-06-30 11:00:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 31,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15750330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/therestisconfetti/pseuds/dj%20jiggle%20juice
Summary: But Chloe’s giving her that giddy grin, the one that tells Beca she’s going to break her facade and burst into laughter at any moment.Beca thinks this won’t be so bad, fake dating Chloe. Not when everything with Chloe happens with ease.





	1. one

**Author's Note:**

> hello there! Welcome to my first multi-chap in a v long time. This fic will come with social media aus (on tumblr @backtobasicbellas soon) and a playlist that is still in the works. Hope you guys enjoy!

Beca hates a lot of things, but right now she can’t think of anything she hates more than Chloe Beale.

Wait, let her rephrase that: she can’t think of anything she hates more than Chloe Beale’s damn puppy pout.

She comes home to their crappy little Brooklyn apartment to pizza from her favorite new spot three blocks down and a fresh batch cupcakes from the oven. She finds Chloe in the kitchen, turning to face her with a bright smile as she takes off her oven mitts.

“Welcome home,” Chloe greets with her signature friendly smile. “How was work?”

Beca narrows her eyes immediately, knowing exactly what this means. This means Chloe wants something, and Chloe knows bribing Beca with food is often the way to go.

“What are you doing?” she asks cautiously, slowly putting her bag down by their shared bed.

Chloe’s eyes are wide and vibrant as she innocently replies, “I’m not allowed to feed my best friend dinner when I feel like it?”

Beca snorts. “You always make me dinner,” she reminds the girl. “However, you  _ don’t _ always take the time to go get pizza from my favorite place and bake cupcakes. You hate going to that place and complain about how long the wait is.”

They both know she’s right. The last time Beca had tried to bribe Chloe to go there, they waited approximately ten minutes before Chloe was asking if they could go anywhere else for dinner because she was “absolutely  _ starving, _ Becs” and needed to eat within the next five minutes.

And Beca, always weak to Chloe’s stupid puppy pout, had grumbled and agreed, following a suddenly perky Chloe Beale down the block to the burger joint they often frequented during the week.

“They’re red velvet,” Chloe grins motioning to the cupcakes as Beca shrugs off her coat. “And you know, the wait wasn’t that bad this time.”

Beca’s eyes wander to the cupcakes, and dammit Chloe’s even used that frosting that Beca will literally eat straight from the container when Chloe’s not home. She turns her focus back on the redhead though, still eyeing her carefully.

“Stop being weird,” Chloe tells her as she sits down.

“ _ You’re _ being weird,” Beca retorts, slowly approaching. “What did you do?”

Chloe gives her an innocent look, bright blue eyes wide and her head slightly tilted. Beca would find it endearing or adorable if she wasn’t convinced Chloe was about to drop a bombshell on her at any given moment.

“Nothing,” the redhead insists.

Beca’s about to ask another question, but the front door bursts open and Amy’s entering the apartment.

“Is that pizza I smell?” she asks, grinning in their direction. “And cupcakes? Oh Chloe, don’t mind if I do!”

Chloe laughs, handing Amy a plate. “Go for it, Ames.”

Beca narrows her eyes at Chloe as the redhead hands her a plate with the biggest slice of pizza. “I don’t trust you,” she says slowly. “but I’m not turning down this meal because that would be such a waste.”

“Eat up Becs,” she grins, taking Beca’s acceptance of the food as a minor victory. “I know you’re starving after work.”

And Chloe gives her that damn wink that she’s done time and time again over the years, the one that right now only makes Beca rolls her eyes but sometimes still leaves her flushed and feeling weird because Chloe Beale is a _ total weirdo. _

Amy stays for a total of thirty-five minutes before she is quickly making her way out the door, mentioning something about seeing a man, but not about a horse or something of the sort. Beca doesn’t question it though; she learned a long time ago that living with Amy works best if you don’t ask too many questions because odds are, the answer will definitely not make any sense at all.  

As soon as the door shuts behind the Australia, Beca whips her attention back to her best friend sitting across from her.

“Alright Beale, spill.”

Chloe’s still trying to pull off the innocent best friend look, eyes wide and surprised. “Spill what?”

“Chloe,” she warns.

“Yes, Becs?”

Beca resists the urge to glare at Chloe, instead crossing her arms and quirking an eyebrow. Chloe tends to get away with a lot - especially around Beca, as  _ some people _ (Amy and Stacie) have pointed out in the past - but she’s not getting away with this.

She doesn’t waver in her gaze when she insists, “I’m serious.”

For whatever reason, whether she realizes Beca is going to keep pressing her or because she’s done pushing Beca’s buttons for the day - or maybe both - Chloe’s shoulders drop as her lips turn into a frown.

“Fine,” she sighs dramatically.

This time Beca does roll her eyes.

“I have something to ask you,” Chloe starts.

“Knew it!” Beca exclaims, but then shrinks in her seat when Chloe gives her a look. “Sorry, continue.”

“I need you to pretend to be my girlfriend next month at my cousin’s wedding.”

Beca’s almost positive she hasn’t heard right. Either that, or Chloe’s doing that thing again where she tries to freak Beca out before bursting into a fit of giggles and saying, “just kidding, Becs!”

(The most memorable time is when Chloe had brought a dog home, saying she signed the adoption papers that morning.

Beca almost had a heart attack before Chloe laughed and explained she was just watching him until her friend got off of work later that evening.)

They stare at each other for a moment: Chloe with an apprehensive expression while Beca waits for the punchline.

“Oh,” Beca finally says when Chloe’s still giving her that look. “You’re serious?!”

“Dixie Chicks serious,” Chloe confirms, but there’s a ghost of a smile on her lips at the taunt in her word choice.

Beca ignores it, though. “And  _ what _ on earth has convinced you that this is something that one, you should do and two, that I would do go along with this?”

Chloe sighs, running a hand through her hair. “My parents.”

“What?”

“They wanted to bring me a date to the wedding,” she explains to Beca with a frown. “Anthony. He’s a childhood friend and my parents  _ love _ him. I’ve known him forever and we grew up next door to each other, even dated at the end of high school. He’s single now I guess so they want me to bring him as a plus one.”

“And you don’t want to go with him,” Beca fills in, more as a confirmation for herself than making sure she’s keeping up with Chloe.

(She tries not to visibly frown though.

Not because like, she doesn’t want Chloe to go with him or anything, it’s just that she doesn’t like the idea of Chloe’s parents forcing her to do something like that.

That’s all.)

“We both know we aren’t it for each other,” Chloe shrugs. “And agreeing to go with him is like giving my parents false hope.”

Beca thinks she’s following the gist here, but she’s not exactly following Chloe’s “please be my fake girlfriend” logic.

“Then why don’t you just tell them you’re going alone?”

“Because,” Chloe continues, letting out an irritated groan. “They won’t let it rest if I try. Plus, I’m turning twenty-seven this year, I think by now I’m supposed to automatically have a plus one to these things!”

Chloe throws her hands up in exasperation, a distraught look on her face. She’s clearly upset, and Beca’s well-versed in the language of Chloe Beale by now to know this is not something to take lightly.

“Chloe, it’s not a big deal,” Beca tries. “Plenty of people go alone to weddings.”

“But I  _ can’t, _ ” Chloe insists, and it’s then that the brunette realizes there’s something Chloe’s not telling her.

“Chloe,” she starts slowly. “What did you tell your parents?”

Chloe bites her lip, eyeing Beca anxiously. The two of them stare at each other for a moment. Beca’s got that look in her eye that lets Chloe know she isn’t letting her off this time.

It takes all of five seconds for Chloe to crack.

“I may have told them I’m coming with you.”

Beca’s eyes widen. “Chloe!”

“I’m sorry!” Chloe’s immediately apologizing, hand reaching over the table to grab Beca’s arm before she can storm off. “I didn’t - I didn’t say you were coming as my date. They just took it that way and then they were talking a mile a minute and my mom’s so excited to see us now and-”

She stops herself short, letting out a short breath as she looks at Beca, waiting for her a reaction. Beca doesn’t move out of Chloe’s grasp, but she’s looking at Chloe incredulously.

“This is insane.”

“Beca please,” the redhead tries. “It’ll only be for a few days. You’re getting a free trip with free food and quality time with your best friend.”

“We already share a bed together,” Beca scoffs. “I don’t think there’s much more than can qualify as ‘quality time’ than that.”

Chloe squeezes her arm gently. “I will let you pick our Netflix shows and movies for two weeks straight if you come to the wedding with me.”

“This is ridiculous,” she says, eyes not meeting Chloe’s

“And I’ll pay for your coffee when we go out.”

She hums this time, trying to hide a smile at Chloe’s additional offer.

“Beca?”

Beca knows that voice. It’s soft and needy and she knows Chloe uses it when she really, really wants something from her.

She makes the mistake of looking at Chloe when she hears her name.

Chloe’s bottom lip is jutted out in full and her big, vibrant blue eyes are wide. She knows exactly what she’s doing, has done it many times in the past and Beca knows she’ll just keep doing it because somehow it always just  _ works _ .

Damn Chloe Beale and her stupidly powerful puppy pout.

“Fine,” she relents with a sigh. “Fine. I’m in.”

Chloe squeals, giving her arm one last squeeze before letting go to clap her hands together. “You are the best!”

“You owe me,” Beca grumbles.

(She can’t stay grumpy for long, not with the way Chloe’s eyes light up and she sports the biggest smile on her face.

Beca can’t stay irritated knowing that’s her doing.)

 

* * *

 

They don’t talk about it for awhile.

Beca goes to work at the studio most days while Chloe works her shifts at the vet clinic three blocks down and they’re  _ fine _ .

Honestly, Beca almost forgets about it until she finds Chloe sitting on their bed two weeks later, notebook out and patting the spot next to her.

“Are you studying or something?”

Chloe shakes her head. “No no, we’re planning.”

Beca furrows her eyebrows. “Planning?”

“Our fake relationship,” her best friend explains cheerily. “We have to start working the details out now so we don’t forget a thing when we get there!”

Beca groans. “Seriously, Chlo? Can’t we just say we met in college and it all kind of ‘just happened’?”

This is the last thing Beca wants to do on a Tuesday afternoon that she’s not actually spending at BFD. In fact, Beca would rather curl up in the bed Chloe’s sitting in and watch Netflix until it gets too dark and order takeout for dinner.

Yeah, that sounds like a much better Tuesday afternoon.

“No,” Chloe stresses with a pout. “My close family already knows you as Beca my best friend-”

(Beca smiles at that, just a little.)

“-so they’re going to want to know how best friend became girlfriend, obviously. They’re very nosy people.

“Huh would’ve never guessed,” Beca teases, raising an eyebrow at Chloe. “Not like you’re nosy or anything.”

Chloe waves her off, shaking her head with a smile. “Come on, we need to make sure we’re on the same page.”

Beca looks at her best friend for a moment sat on their bed ready to literally sit there and plan out their entire fake relationship. She finally groans, pinching the bridge of her nose as she squeezes her eyes shut.

“Let’s go,” she finally says, grabbing her phone and a jacket.

Chloe furrows her eyebrows. “Where we going?”

“Down the street,” Beca explains after pulling her jacket on. “You’re buying me coffee for having to do this.”

Chloe obliges, seemingly pleased that Beca isn’t putting up much of a fight about it. She’s quickly gathering her things before she’s dragging Beca out the door.

Beca pretends to scowl, but it only lasts so long before she’s smiling at Chloe.

“So like, you know we’re going to have to kiss every now and then, right?” Chloe asks after Beca’s had a cup of coffee and a muffin.

Beca’s cheeks flush at the question, her eyes averting Chloe’s as she manages to reply stammering, “What? Um, yeah. Duh. Of course.”

“So you won’t be weird, right? Cause if we need to practice-”

“No!” Beca yelps loudly, the tips of her ears tinting red as she blushes furiously. “No, it’s  _ fine _ Chlo. We don’t have to practice.”

She clenches her jaw, eyes focusing on the empty cup of coffee on the table instead of on Chloe. Her cheeks feel hot and she doesn’t even have to glance to know Chloe’s looking at her with an amused smirk, a laugh threatening from her lips at any moment. 

Damn Chloe Beale and her ability to figure out how to have Beca flustered in a moment’s notice.

“Wow Becs, is kissing me that much of a no go?”

Chloe’s voice is teasing and for a moment Beca thinks she hears a tinge of genuine hurt, but she brushes it off quickly when she dares to look up and sees the playfulness in those pretty blue eyes.

“It’s not - That’s not the - just,” she pauses and lets out a huff before glaring down at her empty coffee cup. “I just don’t think we need to practice, that’s all.”

But now she’s thinking about the fact she has to be  _ kissing _ Chloe. She shouldn’t be so thrown off - of course they were going to have to kiss at some point if they wanted to sell this whole ‘fake dating’ thing at the wedding. It’s just that it had never really crossed Beca’s mind at all until right now when Chloe throws it into the open like that.

Chloe must sense that she’s in her head because her voice grows softer when she says, “Becs, if this makes you too uncomfortable, you don’t have to-”

“No,” Beca says before she even realizes it.

She looks up and finds Chloe’s eyes looking at her with a gentle gaze, eyebrows knitted in concern.

“It’s fine. I’m fine,” she promises, reaching over and giving Chloe’s wrist a gentle squeeze. “I told you I’m in. I’m not backing out.”

“Are you sure?” Chloe asks, and Beca knows if she calls it in this moment, Chloe will allow her to walk away from this whole situation right now.

But the way Chloe’s looking at her, genuinely concerned about her and the way her lips part just a little as she looks at Beca has the brunette offering a tiny smile.

“Positive.”

Chloe’s eyes light up as her mouth forms a grin that can’t help but make Beca grin too.

 

* * *

 

It’s a week until the wedding and it somehow happens to be the busiest week of Beca’s life.

This client they’re working with is supposed to be some big rising star and they have Beca working the most insane hours, staying late into the night or coming in much earlier. Every single version of the song she’s given to her boss has been sent back with a “it needs to be better.”

Beca doesn’t spend much time with Chloe these days. Most of the time, she comes home to Chloe half asleep with her laptop next to her, an old episode of Parks and Rec - because Chloe can watch that show over and over without consequence - running. On these nights, Beca toes off her boots carefully and changes as quietly as she can, knowing Chloe may not say anything, but she’s waiting for Beca to come to bed. When she finally does, Chloe presses a soft kiss at the top of her head and says “happy you’re home” before she’s nuzzling up to Beca, breaths evening out rather quickly.

Beca falls asleep to the sounds of Chloe’s breathing and the way her arm falls around Beca’s waist.

“Beca you really need to start packing,” Chloe tells her the next morning - a rare one in which Beca actually has time to lounge around in their tiny apartment before spending god-knows-how-many hours at work for the day.

Beca groans into her coffee. “You know I hate packing.”

“I know,” Chloe admits, moving effortlessly around the kitchen as she prepares her second cup of tea of the morning. “but you can’t just throw everything you think you’re going to wear into a suitcase. We’re going to a  _ wedding. _ ”

“How about  _ you _ start packing my things, then?” Beca suggests with a smirk. “And you know, I’ll finish when I’m not buried in work.”

Chloe laughs, full and loud in their apartment. Beca turns to see Amy move in her sleep, but otherwise the Australian stays unbothered in her bed.

“One, you won’t be not buried in work until we leave, and two, you’ll never hear the end of it from Aubrey if you forget to pack heels or your actual outfit for the wedding.”

“Aubrey?” Beca asks with a frown. “What does Aubrey have to do with it?”

Chloe looks up from the tea she’s stirring, tilting her head slightly. “Oh, did I forget to mention Aubrey’s coming to the wedding?”

“Uh, why?”

“She and my cousin grew up together in Virginia,” Chloe explains as she sips on her tea carefully. “That’s kind of how I met Aubrey at Barden, actually. Because of Hannah.”

Beca’s eyebrows raise at the information. “That’s cool, I guess.”

Chloe hums in agreement as she adds, “It’s one less person we’re trying to convince while we’re out there. At least we’ll have a friend who knows.”

“Hey no,” Beca frowns. “ _ You _ have a friend out there that knows we’re not really dating. Not me.”

Chloe makes a face. “You and Aubrey are friends now though.”

“That doesn’t mean I’m not still traumatized!” Beca says dramatically, throwing her hand around for effect.

“Oh Beca, please-”

“No if you get Aubrey, I want someone there too,” Beca insists. “For moral support.”

“You’re being ridiculous. How would we even get them invited?”

Beca quirks an eyebrow. “Aubrey’s plus one?”

Chloe raises both eyebrows at her. “So you’re going to force Aubrey to bring someone as her plus one? It better not be, you know,” she nods her head in the direction of Amy.

Beca side eyes their other roommate and snorts. “Of course not. If we brought her, our charade would last all of two seconds. I was thinking...Stacie.”

It’s the first name that comes to Beca’s mind. Before she was best friends with Chloe and Amy somehow found her way into Beca’s inner circle, there was Stacie. Stacie had immediately hung around Beca for no apparent reason after aca-initiation. They both lived in Baker Hall and often walked home from practices together, and although it was an odd pairing, they quickly became friends.

Both brutally honest, both just trying to figure out what the fuck college was. 

(Beca knows she’s always been Stacie’s favorite, even if the taller girl won’t admit it.)

Chloe takes a long sip of her tea, but Beca can see in her eyes she’s thinking about the suggestion.

“Plus, Aubrey’s like, friends with Stacie I think,” Beca adds with a shrug.

It gets a hum out of Chloe before she’s saying, “Well, Aubrey  _ did _ say she doesn’t have a plus one…”

Beca lights up. “See! Perfect idea! You should call her and tell her!”

Chloe smiles mischievously, reaching over to grab her phone on the table. “Excellent, we’ll call her right now.”

“‘We’? I don’t want to talk to her.”

“It was your idea,” Chloe points out.

She’s giving Beca that look, the one that tells her she better have something good to say back or else she’s getting an earful. Beca knows better than to retaliate. Instead, she lets out a sigh as she downs the remainder of her morning coffee. 

“Call her,” Beca relents, closing her eyes and pinching the bridge of her nose.

Chloe gives her a victorious grin, smugly tapping away at her phone before she’s hitting speaker and it begins to ring.  

Beca hates the way she grows nervous as she hears the phone ring. She really,  _ really _ hopes that Aubrey doesn’t pick up. It’s not that she’s still afraid of Aubrey, not really. It’s more so that Aubrey will be ridiculous about it and start bickering.

The phone keeps ringing as Chloe and Beca awkwardly sit there, waiting. Beca’s almost positive Aubrey won’t answer until they finally Aubrey pick up.

Damn it.

_ “Well hello Chloe,” _ Aubrey greets on the line, evidently multitasking because they hear shuffling in the background.  _ “Good morning.” _

“Hi Bree,” Chloe greets, eyes flitting to meet Beca’s before she looks back down at her phone. “I didn’t catch you at a bad time, did I?”

_ “No, not at all. I’m just getting ready for work.” _

Beca makes a face and Chloe gives her a look.

“Well I’m with Becs right now and we - actually  _ Beca _ has a question for you,” Chloe tells her pointedly, looking back up at her best friend.

Beca inwardly groans, whispering a “you bitch” before raising her voice to a normal tone and saying, “Uh, hey Aubrey.”

_ “Beca,” _ Aubrey responds.  _ “To what do I owe this pleasure?” _

Beca can sense the sarcasm dripping off of Aubrey’s voice. She rolls her eyes, but Chloe’s still giving her that look and she raises her eyebrows for effect.

“Listen,” Beca starts, trying not to squirm under Chloe’s hard gaze. “Um, since you don’t have a plus one to the wedding. Do you think you could bring Stacie as your plus one?”

_ “Stacie?” _ Aubrey asks in confusion and slight surprise.

Beca looks up to Chloe, begging with her eyes to elaborate because she might make a snide comment if she opens her mouth again.

“Beca thinks it’d be better if we had another person who knew about our whole deal,” Chloe fills in easily. “Just, like, another person so she feels more comfortable, I guess.”

There’s a moment of silence and then,  _ “Why Stacie, exactly?” _

“Why not Stacie?” Beca immediately counters. “You guys are like, friends, right? And I’m good friend with her, too.”

Aubrey lets out a soft hum. _ “Yeah, we are,”  _ she answers, but it’s somewhat distant.

Beca raises her eyebrows at the phone. “So you’ll do it?”

_ “I’ll ask Stacie if she’s free,”  _ Aubrey decides, and Beca breathes a little sigh of relief.  _ “I guess it’ll be better having her around too than just having to third wheel you two by myself all weekend.” _

“Oh poor you,” Beca deadpans with a snort.

_ “Don’t test me today Mitchell,” _ Aubrey warns.

Beca’s eyes widen just a little, an amused expression on her face she often wears when Aubrey gets snappy with her. She looks up at Chloe who shakes her head at their antics that somehow never outgrow them.

It’s weird though, how easily Aubrey accepts the request. Beca was fully expecting more of a push and shove type of thing, something that’s typical of their relationship.

“Okay well that’s all we had for you,” the redhead quickly says. “Have a good day, Bree! We’ll see you next week!”

They say their goodbyes - even Beca, who grumbles “bye” and a moment later a “thank you” after being prompted by Chloe.

“That was…” Beca starts.

“Odd?” Chloe guesses and Beca nods. “She got a little weird when you mentioned Stacie.”

Beca shrugs. “Maybe she really doesn’t have any friends.”

“Beca!” Chloe scolds.

Beca throws her hands up and adds, “I’m kidding.”

“You better be.”

But Chloe’s giving her that giddy grin, the one that tells Beca she’s going to break her facade and burst into laughter at any moment.

Beca thinks this won’t be so bad, fake dating Chloe. Not when everything with Chloe happens with ease.


	2. two

“Becs, wake up.”

Beca’s eyes slowly flutter open at the soft and gentle sound of Chloe’s voice and a shake of her shoulder. She takes in her surroundings, gathering that she must’ve dozed off some time after takeoff. People are shuffling about, filing off the plane or grabbing their bags from the overhead cabin.

“We’re here,” Chloe murmurs, careful not to alarm the newly woken up Beca.

Beca blinks a few times, stretching in her seat. She offers Chloe a tired smile as they gather their belongings.

“How long was I asleep for?” she asks curiously.

Chloe laughs softly as they fall in line to exit the plane. “You passed out less than ten minutes after takeoff.”

Beca gapes at her. “I was asleep for the _whole_ flight?”

“Like a baby,” the redhead tells her with a teasing smile.

Beca resists an eyeroll, following Chloe out of the plane and into the airport. They’re still inside, but Beca can feel the humidity beginning to sink in as she grows too warm for the hoodie she’s dawned before leaving for the airport this morning.

“Aubrey!” Chloe practically yells, waving dramatically at the blonde yards away.

Beca winces at Chloe basically yelling in her ear, but turns to find Aubrey with a wide grin and an enthusiastic wave back. The brunette is relieved to find none other than Stacie Conrad to Aubrey’s right.

She follows behind Chloe, although she doesn’t do the weird sprint-jog thing Chloe attempts with her carry on dragging along behind her. Chloe’s squealing as she lets go of her baggage and immediately throws her arms around Aubrey, the two of them laughing.

Honestly, the sight kind of warms Beca’s heart.

“Come here B,” Stacie grins, pulling her into a hug that’s way tighter or longer than Beca would prefer.

“You know I hate it when you call me that,” Beca grumbles, but she hugs Stacie back anyway.

Stacie laughs, pulling away from her with a smirk. “Why do you think I do it?”

Beca makes a face at her before Chloe is immediately throwing her arms around the leggy brunette, getting a “woah there, hey Red” out of Stacie. She turns to see Aubrey there regarding her with a slight smile.

“Hey Beca.”

Beca nods at her. “Aubrey.”

The two look at each other for a moment before Aubrey quirks an eyebrow at her and Beca rolls her eyes, going in for the hug.

So maybe she and Aubrey are actually friends now, but pretending to hate the blonde is just so much more _fun._

The four of them head to the parking garage where Aubrey’s rental car is waiting. Chloe and Aubrey lead the way, the two of the chattering nonstop. Beca hangs back with Stacie, who regards Aubrey and Chloe with a fond expression.

“Hey,” Beca says, calling the tall brunette’s attention. “Thanks for coming this weekend. I know it was like, super last minute.”

Stacie waves her off like it’s not big deal. “Of course, anything to see you losers again for a weekend.”

Beca smiles, not minding the way Stacie nudges her playfully. “Seriously dude,” she continues. “I’m really glad you’re here.”

Stacie smiles and gives her a knowing look, one that means something that Beca can’t quite understand. She opens her mouth to ask, but then Chloe’s calling shotgun and Stacie’s giving her a pout.

“I was already sitting there!” Stacie whines, crossing her arms.

Chloe gives her a cheeky smile. “You didn’t call it now though, did you?”

“I’ll get you back Chlo,” Stacie warns before hopping into the back seat.

“It’s like I’m dealing with children,” Aubrey mutters, helping Chloe put her things in the back.

Beca snorts. “And you say I’m the childish one.”

Aubrey raises an eyebrow at her. “I’m talking about all of you.”

“Whatever,” Beca mutters, tossing her belongings into the trunk before joining Stacie in the backseat.

Chloe’s immediately reaching over and plugging her phone in so she has control of the music as Aubrey pulls out of the airport and begins to drive them to the hotel.

“So,” Aubrey starts once Chloe’s settled on a song and is humming along softly. “What’s the story we’re going with here?”

“What?” Beca asks, clearly confused.

“With your fake relationship,” Stacie explains. “We need to know the official story so if people ask me or Aubs, then we know how to answer.”

Chloe catches Beca’s eyes in the rearview mirror at the way Stacie says “Aubs” instead of “Bree.”

Well, that’s new.

“Right,” Chloe nods. “Well, most of our history stays the same. The Bellas, best friends, all of that.”

Aubrey hums. “Makes sense.”

“We’ve been dating for a little over three months,” Chloe clarifies.

Stacie’s eyes grow wide with excitement at this topic, she looks from Beca to Chloe. “So what’s the story there?”

Beca groans at the mention of it, hitting her head back against the seat as she squeezes her eyes shut.

“Tell them Chloe,” she says through clenched teeth.

She hears Chloe’s melodic laugh and feels a hand pat her leg gently. Opening one eye, she finds Chloe leaning back to give her a smile and the redhead’s hand on her knee.

“It’s cute,” she reminds Beca. “And you agreed to it.”

“Well tell us!” Stacie begs, focus raptly on Chloe.

Chloe laughs again, hand slipping off of Beca’s leg as she begins her story. “So one day before Beca leaves for work, she asks me for my phone and downloads a playlist on it titled ‘for Chloe’ and tells me to listen to it on my way home from work. I just thought it was another playlist because Beca _always_ makes me playlists-”

“-no one needed to know that!” Beca pouts.

“It’s okay, it’s sweet,” Chloe winks at her.

Beca tries really hard not to flush at that comment.

(She knows she fails because Stacie snorts when they make eye contact.)

“Anyway, I do as I’m told and listen to the playlist on my way home from the clinic. It’s probably the sweetest thing anyone’s ever made for me,” Chloe beams, and in the rearview mirror she sees the way Aubrey rolls her eyes. “It has all these love songs or songs that Beca and I have talked about before, songs that I would’ve thought she’d forgotten about but clearly hasn’t.”

“Wow fake Beca has a heart,” Aubrey smirks.

Beca rolls her eyes. Stacie leans over and pinches her cheek.

“Ow!”

“So cute Becs,” Stacie coos.

“Fuck off, Conrad.”

Chloe swats Beca’s knee playfully, but continues. “So like, listening to this playlist, I realize that Beca’s literally the most perfect person ever, and that I want to be with her because she’s the one I want to come home to every day - which, I already do.”

“How domestic,” Stacie smirks.

“When Beca gets home I’m immediately jumping out of my seat. I ask her how long she’s been wanting to tell me something like this, that she’s into me, and she tells me it feels like it’s been forever, but she’s all weird and stuttering and won’t look at me. And I just absolutely melt at that and kiss her! And the rest is history!”

Beca lets out another loud groan, crossing her arms. “You make me sound like such a sap in this story!”

“I agree,” Aubrey says. “You make it sound like Beca’s capable of more than at most two emotions.”

“Be nice,” Chloe chides her, but she turns to Beca. “It’s a cute story Becs, it’ll have everyone falling in love with us.”

“She’s right,” Stacie nods. “And it probably won’t scare people off since you give mad ‘don’t fucking talk to me’ vibes half the time.”

Beca narrows her eyes at her. “Thanks,” she replies, heavy sarcasm on her tongue.

She spends the rest of the ride with Stacie teasing her while Aubrey and Chloe sing along to the music. Stacie eventually joins in with the singing and before Beca knows it, they’re all egging her on to join in. She gets a weird deja vu vibe from that time her freshman year when she was forced to sing Miley Cyrus on the way to a competition.

But Chloe’s giving her that wide eyed puppy dog pout and she hits the next note confidently before they’re all singing along.

Chloe grins at her from the rearview mirror and Beca can’t find it in her to be mad.

 

* * *

 

Beca tugs at the nice blouse she’s wearing, pulling it a little more out of the pants she’s wearing. She eyes herself in the mirror on the dresser across from their bed.

(They decided they should just save money a get a one bed hotel room because really, sharing a queen bed sounds like a dream compared to their tiny fold out in Brooklyn.)

Chloe comes out of the bathroom, hair falling to one side and a soft smile on her lips when her eyes land on Beca.

“You ready?”

The redhead nods, grabbing her purse from the dresser. “It’s only dinner, Becs.”

“It’s dinner where we have to actually start pretending like we’re dating,” Beca points out. “In front of your parents.”

“And Aubrey and Stacie,” Chloe reminds her gently, leaning over to squeeze her arm. “We’re going to be fine.”

Beca nods, more for herself than Chloe. “You’re right,” she breathes out.

Chloe grins at her, hand sliding down her arm to take Beca’s. “I am. Now let’s go.”

Beca says nothing about the way Chloe doesn’t let go of her hand as they exit their hotel room, allowing the redhead to swing their hands between them back and forth in a gentle motion.

Something about it soothes Beca. Sure, she’s about to lie to Chloe’s parents’ face - who she’s met before twice while they were still at Barden - and also her cousin, but it’s fine. She’s fine when Chloe gives her that reassuring smile and gentle squeeze in her hand while they take the elevator down to the lobby where Aubrey and Stacie are waiting.

They find other two in the lobby, Stacie giggling at something Aubrey must’ve said. Aubrey turns to the two quickly, her posturing straightening and Beca wonders what’s gotten into _her_ to be weird like this.

“You guys know we still have a five minute drive before we actually have to go along with the pretend girlfriend thing, right?” Stacie asks, eyeing their interlocked hands.

Beca’s about to ask her what the whole giggling thing was about when Chloe shrugs and says, “We might as well start now so it looks natural.”

Stacie raises an eyebrow at Chloe, then turns her attention to Beca to see what her thoughts are.

“What she said,” Beca shrugs.

Stacie lets out a soft hum and exchanges a look with Aubrey before they’re all headed out to Aubrey’s rental for dinner with Chloe’s parents.

Chloe keeps a hand on Beca’s leg the whole ride there, opting to sit in the back with her instead of fight with Stacie to sit in the front. Stacie fills the short drive with how everything’s going at work. Beca can barely follow along because she’s using words that could be fake for all she knows, but Chloe’s giving her rapt attention while Aubrey smiles - proudly, or is it fondly? - as she keeps her eyes on the road.

“You’re killing it Stace,” Aubrey tells her as they pull into the parking lot of the restaurant.

Chloe shakes her head in amazement. “You’re like, going to save the world one day.”

Stacie laughs softly with a shake of her head. “I’m not that good Red,” she says, immediately hopping out of the car when they find a parking spot.

“It’s just my parents,” Chloe reminds Beca as she opens her car door. “They like you already.”

“Right,” Beca nods.

She exits on her side, finding Aubrey and Stacie waiting for them expectantly. Well, Stacie’s waiting expectantly. Aubrey’s on her phone, probably responding to some work-related message.

“Ready to get the show on the road kids?” Stacie asks.

Chloe smiles with ease, taking Beca’s hand in hers like she did earlier. Beca realizes she finds comfort in this, the way that now, physical contact with Chloe makes her feel relax but also kind of ignites something in her she isn’t quite familiar with.

“Ready if you are,” Chloe tells her.

Beca offers her a smile. “Let’s make a damn good fake couple, then.”

Chloe beams at her as they enter the restaurant, immediately spotting her parent at a table not too far away from the hostess’ stand.

“Mom! Dad!”

It’s then that Beca starts to grow nervous again, allowing Chloe to lead her - hands still linked - towards her parents. She sees the way Chloe’s parents light up at the sight of their daughter, both standing from their chair to greet Chloe and the rest of them

She doesn’t know if she can do this, doesn’t know if she can lie to Chloe’s parents, who are good people. After all, they did help Chloe pay for her three extra years at Barden and even helped Beca, Chloe, and Amy in their apartment search once they realized they’d be moving to New York.

There isn’t much time to dwell on this because Aubrey is swiftly moving past Beca to greet Chloe’s parents too and Stacie’s all charming as usual and Beca has no other choice but to fall into it all.

“Chloe, sweetheart!” her mother exclaims, throwing her arms open for Chloe’s embrace. “It’s so good to see you.”

The grin on Chloe’s face when she lets go of Beca’s hand to hug her parents makes Beca smile too. She isn’t super tight with her parents at all - although Chloe’s helped her try to fix the awkwardness between her and her father throughout the years - but seeing how happy Chloe is to see them makes her happy, too. She kinda gets it.

“Hi Mom,” Chloe murmurs before pulling away, still grinning. She then turns back around, beckoning Beca closer. “You remember Beca?”

“Hey Mrs. Beale,” Beca greets a bit hesitantly.

“Of course I remember Beca!” her mother exclaims, throwing her arms around her. “Although now it’s Beca, your _girlfriend_ now.”

Beca lets out a nervous chuckle, hugging Chloe’s mother back for a moment before pulling away.

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me right away!” her mother continues, looking from Beca to Chloe.

“Don’t feel too bad,” Aubrey says, coming in for a side hug. “They kept it from us for a little bit, too.”

She gives a teasing scold towards Beca and Chloe and for a second Beca forgets that it’s pretend; it feels like Aubrey’s actually poking fun at them.

“We told you eventually,” Chloe rolls her eyes, her hand coming to the small of Beca’s back.

“You’re just bitter because you weren’t the first to know,” Beca adds in, feeling at ease when Aubrey glares at her and she offers a small smirk.

“Either way, I’m so happy for you two!”

Beca smiles at Chloe’s mother again, trying not to feel bad that she’s lying to one of the nicest woman she knows.

They all get seated, Chloe’s hand guiding Beca on the small of her back the whole way. She sits between Stacie and Chloe, Aubrey going to the opposite side of the table to sit on the other side of Chloe’s mom. Chloe squeezes her knee under the table, making eye contact with Beca to make sure she’s all right.

Beca offers her a small nod and a smile before they’re being pulled back into conversation.

And for the most part, it’s fine, even if Stacie takes advantage of the situation to poke more fun at Beca and Chloe, exaggerating about how she’s _totally known_ they’ve been in love with each other since college. Beca grumbles and tells her she’s delusional, but Chloe is laughing, leaning into Beca until her face is nestled into Beca’s neck breath from her laughter warming Beca’s skin.

It’s comforting, to say the least, having Chloe so close and brushing all of Stacie’s comments and Aubrey subtle looks with a laugh.

The warmth from Chloe’s laughter warms Beca’s chest too, just like it does when Chloe grips her arm or knee from laughing too hard, or placing a kiss on Beca’s cheek when Stacie pokes a little too much fun at her.

It’s easy, really. Chloe’s the one who does all the work since Beca’s never known to be big on being in other people’s spaces anyway. Chloe’s never had any regard for that, certainly not when she burst into Beca’s shower all those years ago and certainly not when Beca wakes up every morning to Chloe pressed up against her back and an arm around her middle.

But Beca’s found she doesn’t mind it at all.

(Freshman Beca would be mortified.

Brooklyn-living Beca refuses to admit that she almost craves Chloe’s touch.)

And when Chloe’s mother asks how exactly did they go from being best friends to being girlfriends, Aubrey wears a taunting smirk as Stacie grins so wide Beca thinks she might rip her cheeks. Chloe’s face lights up at the first chance of actually telling her story to those who need to buy it.

She turns to Beca with bright eyes. Beca rolls her eyes, but lets a soft chuckle fall from her lips.

“Tell them the story, Chlo.”

The redhead launches into the story, adding more spice to it than Beca had expected, making it seem like this whole time they’ve been dancing around each other - which, totally isn’t what happened - and that it’s some big, great love story that’s been waiting to be told. Beca doesn’t mind though, whatever helps sell it. She opts for resting her hand on Chloe’s legs - she would play with Chloe’s fingers, but Chloe’s using her hands to tell the story like she does when she has a rather wild story from her shift at the clinic - and smiles at how well Chloe tells it.

She sticks a tongue out at Stacie when she coos at all the parts that make Beca sound grossly sweet and quips back a comment of her own when Aubrey comments on how she had no idea Beca was capable of caring about another person as much as she cares about Chloe.

Chloe’s father is smiling at them, seemingly happy at how his daughter’s doing. Her mother looks between the two of them, throwing in a “my my, Beca - Chloe, it sounds like you’ve got a keeper” at the end.

“Yeah, I guess I’m keeping her around,” Chloe teases, giving Beca a lopsided grin.

Beca shakes her head. “You’re a dork.”

Chloe’s lopsided grin only widens at the comment.

After awhile, Beca excuses herself to the restroom. She doesn’t expect Aubrey to suddenly stand up and announce she’s coming along, but it happens.

“Why are you following me?” Beca half teases as they walk away from their table.

Aubrey sideyes her as she replies, “You’re not the only person who needs to pee. Plus, it’s a _girl thing_ to go in pairs or groups, you know.”

Beca snorts. “A ‘girl thing,’ sure,” she agrees. “A Beca and Aubrey thing? Not so much.”

Aubrey scoffs, walking ahead of her to push the bathroom door open, not bothering to hold it open for Beca. Beca rolls her eyes extra hard as she follows behind, pushing against the door so it swings wide enough for her.

They both pee, but as they wash their hands, Aubrey looks at Beca.

“You know this isn’t just about her parents, right?”

Beca looking up for the hands she’s rinsing off, quirking an eyebrow. “What are you talking about?”

“Chloe,” Aubrey explains in a _duh_ voice. “and the whole wedding date thing.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s Hannah,” the blonde declares, reaching over for a paper towel.

Beca scowls, turning her faucet off. “What, like she’s doing this whole fake dating thing to prove some kind of point?”

Aubrey sighs, wiping her hands. “Hannah’s the same age as Chloe and me. Growing up, Hannah always seemed to one up Chloe without trying. It’s almost like a competition, and Chloe always feels like she’s just a step behind, and she doesn’t like that - or talking about it, for that matter.”

At this, Beca frowns. Chloe had never seemed like the type to compare success by how others are doing, unless it came to winning an A Capella title. The Chloe she knows lives freely and does basically everything in respect to what she wants, not caring too much if people have something to say about it.

(See: staying in college an extra three years.)

And truth be told, it kind of makes Beca a little sad that Chloe feels like she isn’t enough. In Beca’s eyes, Chloe is literally a gift sent from the heavens. How she managed to stumble upon Chloe and be able to call her a best friend is a mystery, but one that Beca doesn’t question.

Chloe Beale is a goddamn gift to this world as far as she’s concerned.

“I don’t…” Beca starts, but shakes her head as she dries off her hands. “What’s so great about Hannah, anyway?”

Aubrey shrugs. “I love them both, really. It definitely has to do with something while they were growing up. So, you know, Hannah getting married while Chloe hasn’t had a serious relationship since-” she quickly stops herself, catching whatever she was about to say.

Beca narrows her eyes at the blonde, wondering how she was going to finish that sentence. Chloe hasn’t had a real, serious relationship for practically as long as Beca’s known her.

“Anyway, Chloe just feels like she’s falling behind.”

“Why didn’t she tell me?”

“Like I said, it’s not something she likes talking about,” Aubrey repeats. She turns to the mirror, fixing her hair with a sense of finality. “Come on, Chloe might think we’re being murdered in here.”

Beca smirks. “Or that we’re murdering each other.”

“How does she put up with you all the time?” Aubrey mutters under her breath as she leads them out of the restroom.

When they return back to their hotel, bidding Aubrey and Stacie a good night - their hotel room is a floor above - Beca and Chloe fall into their typical nightly routines. They brush their teeth side by side, Chloe making faces while Beca tries not to spit all the foamed toothpaste out as she laughs at Chloe’s antics.

It’s simple, moving around each other so naturally that they don’t even have to think about what they’re doing.

It’s not until they’re in bed, the last lamp light still on and Chloe hovering close to Beca that the brunette says, “Aubrey told me about Hannah.”

Chloe hums, her fingers trailing along Beca’s arm up and down. “Oh?”

“I know this isn’t just because your parent wanted you to bring Anthony as your date,” she explains further.

She feels more than hears Chloe’s long exhale on her shoulder blade.

“Don’t be mad at her,” Beca quickly adds. “I just...Don’t be mad. She just wanted to help.”

“I’m not mad,” Chloe mumbles, but Beca can hear something different in her voice now. Something that’s very unlike Chloe.

She turns so they’re facing each other. Chloe’s face is closer than Beca expected, but the brunette doesn’t shy away. Instead, she focuses on her vibrant eyes already fixated on her.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Beca asks gently, and forgive her if there’s a little hurt in her voice, but Chloe doesn’t _not_ share things with her.

She told Beca that Titanium was her lady jam in their second-ever run in for crying out loud.

Chloe sighs, looking away as she continues to run her fingers up and down Beca’s arm. “It’s not something I like talking about. It’s stupid.”

Beca looks at her with fond exasperation. “You’re amazing dude,” she reminds her with a slight smile. “You don’t...Hannah shouldn’t be a measure of your success.”

She can see the way Chloe hides a smile, but the redhead still won’t make eye contact with her.

“You won three ICCA Titles and won the A Capella World Championship,” Beca reminds her with a playful nudge when she doesn’t speak. “You’re not a loser if you’ve managed that.”

Chloe bites her lip, but she’s breaking into a smile anyway. Her eyes meet Beca’s once again and the two are left smiling at each other for a moment. Her fingers still on the younger girl’s arm, just above her elbow. Chloe doesn’t quite grab her arm, but her hand stays in place.

“Those were because of you.”

“Because of _us,_ ” Beca corrects. “You make me better, Chlo. Always.”

Chloe’s giving her a watery smile and her eyes are full of affection. Beca can’t help but smile back, knowing she’s made Chloe happy again.

“I wish everyone else knew you were this big of a softie,” Chloe teases.

Beca swears she’s not. She swears she doesn’t take the time out of her day to tell people things like this, that she actually has nice things to say on a regular basis.

It’s just something about Chloe’s big, blue eyes and the way she looks like a wounded puppy when she’s sad that gets Beca every damn time.

Stupid Chloe.

“I’d kill you,” Beca threatens, but it holds no meaning to it and they both know it.

“You wouldn’t.”

“Wanna try me?”

Chloe giggles, her hand falling from Beca’s arm to her waist under the covers.

“Good night nerd,” Beca tells her affectionately before turning her back to Chloe and leaning over to turn off the lamp.

The room goes dark and Beca hears, “Good night Becs” murmured into her skin.

She falls asleep to the sound of Chloe’s steady breathing and a smile on her face.


	3. three

Beca gladly takes the mimosa Stacie’s just poured out for her, not hesitating to take a sip.

They sit across from each other at a high table, with Chloe next to Beca and Aubrey next to Stacie, at Hannah’s bridal brunch. All the parties here for the bride mill about, some lounging and chatting while others flitter around.

Beca hates social situations like this, hates having to smile and pretend to care about other people. It’s all so exhausting and not genuine in any way, really. So she opts for sipping quietly on her drink, trying not to think too hard about the way Chloe’s hand rests on her thigh.

“Did your cousin invite everyone she knows?” Stacie jokes, looking around. “Because it feels like she did.”

Chloe laughs, taking a sip of her own drink as she replies, “She makes friends everywhere she goes.”

“Guess it runs in the family,” Beca smirks.

It earns a chuckle from Aubrey - which is quickly hidden by her taking a rather long sip of her mimosa - and a snort of laughter from Stacie.

Chloe shakes her head with a smile, softly squeezing Beca’s leg in response.

“I’m not wrong!”

“I didn’t say you were,” Chloe shrugs.

“Chloe! Aubrey!”

The group of four turns to see what Beca guesses is none other than Hannah Beale quickly approaching. She’s more of a strawberry blonde than a redhead and her skin is paler than Chloe’s. She’s super slim and wears a bright smile that kind of mirrors Chloe’s in a way as she bounds over to greet them.

“Hannah! Hi!”

Both Chloe and Aubrey are sliding out of their seats to meet her when she nears. They both take turns giving her hugs, smiles on their faces.

“Oh, it’s so good to see you two!” Hannah gushes, and she’s got a bit of that drawl in her voice, being a product of Virginia and never quite leaving the state. “I’m so glad you could both make it!”

Aubrey beams at her, obviously happy to see her childhood friend. “We wouldn’t miss it for the world!”

It makes Hannah smile brighter before she’s quickly turning to Chloe with an excited grin. “Are you going to introduce me to your wonderful girlfriend that your mother’s been telling me about this morning?”

At this, Beca resists the urge to roll her eyes. Great, Chloe’s mom is blabbering to everyone about Chloe’s new girlfriend. She takes another long sip of her mimosa, glaring at Stacie who’s snickering at her.

Chloe takes it in stride, seamlessly turning around to smile at Beca. “Right! Well, Hannah this is my girlfriend Beca. Becs, this is Hannah, my cousin and the beautiful bride-to-be.”

Beca puts her glass down and plasters on the friendliest smile she can muster, leaning over to shake Hannah’s hand. “Hi, it’s nice to finally meet you,” she says.

“Oh!” Hannah exclaims as they shake hands before looking with an excited expression towards Chloe. “This is Beca! Barden Beca! I’ve heard a lot about you! I didn’t know you guys were dating now.”

As Beca drops her hand, she quirks an eyebrow at Chloe who looks slightly flushed. “Talk about me to your family, do you?”

Chloe rolls her eyes, shoving her playfully. “I spent three years captaining the Bellas with you, you dork.”

“Not to mention the fact you also live together in New York,” Stacie cheekily adds in with a grin.

“Hi Stacie,” Hannah smiles. “Good to see you again.”

When Chloe and Beca quirk their eyebrows, Hannah explains, “I met her yesterday. She flew in with Aubrey.”

“We just started dating a few months ago, actually,” Chloe tells Hannah, looking back at Beca affectionately. “It’s still pretty new, I guess.”

“You have no idea,” Beca mutters under her breath, covering it up with the last of her mimosa being brought up to her lips.

She thinks Chloe could be an actress with how easily the redhead’s pulling it all off.

Chloe and Aubrey hop back into their seats while Hannah leans against the end of their table, looking at Beca with a smile.

“Surprised you locked her down,” she starts with a laugh. “Chloe hasn’t been much of a serious dater, really.”

Chloe’s jaw slightly sets. Beca notices it right away.

“Um, what do you mean?”

“She’s always been the flirty one out of us two,” Hannah continues, nudging Chloe playfully. “We were all starting to get concerned she’d never actually get serious with anyone.”

Beca looks from Chloe to Aubrey, noticing the look Aubrey’s giving her. She opens her mouth to say something, but Stacie beats her to it.

“Oh please,” she snorts, waving her almost-empty glass between Beca and Chloe. “These two have practically been dating since Barden.”

This draws Hannah’s attention as she asks, “Oh really?”

Stacie nods, a big shit-eating grin on her face. “Totally,” she replies. “I’ve never seen two people more in sync than these two. We used to call them wives when they weren’t around. You’d hardly see them without each other except for - well, not the point. But yeah, they were basically married.”

“Stacie!” Both Beca and Chloe exclaim.

Hannah cocks an eyebrow amusedly, smiling as she turns to Chloe and Beca.

Beca isn’t so sure if she wants to hug Stacie for coming up with that on the spot or kill her for making her sound so grossly domestic.

Maybe both.

And that  _ was _ totally made up, right?

Aubrey’s smiling, but Beca can see the way she’s stifling laughter by leaning into Stacie.

“We totally weren’t,” Beca starts, glaring at the brunette across from her.

Chloe shakes her head, leaning over to press a kiss to Beca’s cheek. “Maybe a little.”

“What?” Beca sputters, trying not to think about the way Chloe’s kiss was pressed a little closer to her lips than normal.

“Come on  _ babe,” _ Chloe adds, looking at Beca pointedly. “She’s not completely wrong.”

For a second, Beca thinks Chloe is crazy, but then she remembers she’s totally Chloe’s fake girlfriend.

Beca figures she might as well have fun with it.

“So you’re saying you were into me the whole time?” she teases with a smirk.

Chloe looks slightly surprised by her question, but she bounces back right away - as Chloe often does in any situation - and gives her a wink as she replies, “I  _ did _ barge into your shower that one time, so...”

Beca’s cheeks flush almost immediately, her voice getting pitchy as she whines out, “Chloe!”

It sets Stacie and Aubrey into a fit of laughter, both of them amused at the way Chloe’s still able to make Beca uncomfortable and awkward after all these years. Hannah laughs along too, watches the way Beca almost pouts while Chloe looks victorious.

“You promised you wouldn’t bring it up anymore!” 

(The one and only time it was brought up was during a round of truth or dare at one of their “Bellas Nights In” - as Chloe and Stacie had dubbed them - and it had left all the Bellas dying in laughter while Beca had turned a deep shade of red, downing the rest of her drink.)

Chloe just laughs with her head thrown back and body shaking. Beca tries not to think of how beautiful she looks when it happens.

The redhead leans grabs her hand, placing it in her lap. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” she says when her laughter fades. “Last time, I swear.”

“It better be,” Beca mutters.

“Please, like you weren’t checking me out too,” Chloe points out, smirking.

_ “Chloe!” _

Stacie almost knocks her glass over as she slams it down, doubling over in laughter louder than before. Aubrey almost spits out her drink onto the table, saving herself by covering her mouth as she shoots wide eyes and raised eyebrows at the two of them.

Hannah’s laughing too, but she’s hiding it the best out of all of them, behind a wide grin.

Beca glares at Chloe.

She agreed to be Chloe’s fake girlfriend, sure, but Beca definitely didn’t agree to be poked at like this. She already gets enough of this as it is when the Bellas are all together.

For some reason, they - even sweet little Emily - just  _ love _ to pick on Beca and make her squirm or bring up every embarrassing thing that’s happened to her, ever.

“Aw come on Becs,” Chloe giggles, bringing their intertwined hands up to her lips, pressing a kiss to the back of Beca’s hand.

Beca doesn’t budge; still glaring and even adds a small pout.

(It has nothing on Chloe’s pout, though. She knows that much.)

“Beca,” Chloe sing-songs.

“Great now she’s mute,” Stacie rolls her eyes.

Beca side eyes her, and maybe in retrospect she probably shouldn’t have because it would’ve better prepared her for the way Chloe leans into her space, her free hand coming up to grab her chin and lightly turn Beca’s face towards her.

Beca’s barely even got a moment to blink before Chloe’s pressing a soft and lingering kiss on her lips.

She doesn’t even have time to even process what’s happening and suddenly Chloe’s pulling back, eyes slowly opening.

Oh my god. Chloe just kissed her.

Chloe just kissed her and Beca’s lips almost chase her for more.

“I’m sorry,” Chloe repeats softly, bright blue eyes focused solely on Beca.

Beca isn’t quite sure what Chloe’s apologizing for.

“Wow,” she hears Stacie murmur.

It snaps her out of her daze, remembering the situation they’ve found themselves in and how Hannah watches them with rapt interest.

She lets out a soft sigh, a smile threatening to break out on her lips. “You’re forgiven.”

Chloe lets out a squeal of happiness. She leans forward and Beca begins to inwardly panic, but Chloe kisses her forehead instead.

“Gross,” she says as she scrunches up her nose.

“Your mom was right,” Hannah gushes, calling everyone’s attention back to her. “Y’all are just the  _ cutest _ together.”

“Thanks,” Chloe beams, squeezing Beca’s hand.

Beca offers a smile that probably comes off more as a grimace and desperately wishes for another mimosa.

Someone calls Hannah’s name and she sighs, looking around the table. “I have to go, but I’m so glad we got to chat for a little bit!”

She waves goodbye and promises to see them at the rehearsal dinner later before wandering off to probably entertain another guest.

Beca lets out a loud exhale, her shoulders dropping with it.

“Well that was fun,” Stacie grins at them.

“That’s one way to put it,” Aubrey murmurs.

Beca notices how Chloe still doesn’t let go of her hand. She only shrugs before continuing to drink her mimosa. Beca doesn’t mind though, not with the way Chloe’s thumb is rubbing back and forth gently against the back of her hand.

Stacie turns to Chloe. “The kiss was a nice touch.”

“Thanks,” Chloe laughs before turning to Beca. “That was okay, right? I know I kinda just did it, but I thought-”

“Dude,” she says, mainly to get Chloe to stop rambling. “I’m here to pretend to be your girlfriend.” Beca quickly reminds her, cheeks flushing at the mere memory of Chloe kissing her two minutes ago. “Girlfriends kiss or whatever.”

Aubrey scoffs. “So elegantly worded, Beca.”

“Shut it, Posen.”

Chloe squeezes her hand, offering a smile. Beca smiles back at her.

“Also, great thinking on the whole Barden thing Stace,” Chloe adds. “It was very convincing.”

Stacie smirks at her. “Oh, I know it was.”

“How’d you come up with it so fast?” Beca asks curiously.

Stacie raises an eyebrow, smirk still on her lips as she says, “Who said I did?”

“What?” Beca and Chloe ask at the same time.

She quickly grabs Aubrey’s mimosa - “Hey!” the blonde exclaims - before knocking the rest of it back to avoid answering the question.

“I’m going to find more of these!” Stacie announces, quickly hopping out of her chair and walking away before the two can bombard her.

“Stacie come back here!”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean, Conrad?!”

Kill her. Beca’s definitely decided she wants to kill Stacie.

Aubrey and Chloe are quick to begin a new conversation, but Beca’s still thinking about the way Chloe’s lips felt against hers.

 

* * *

 

If looks could kill, the glare Aubrey’s giving would definitely murder someone.

The two sit next to each other on lounge chairs in the hotel’s pool area, Chloe on Beca’s other side. After returning from the bridal brunch, Beca had every intention of taking a nice, long nap in their hotel room, but Stacie suggested they “get some sun” and Beca was quickly outnumbered.

(For the record, she would’ve been totally fine if they went without her.

But Chloe pulled that stupid pout and called it “Bella bonding time” so really, it was a lose-lose situation.)

Beca follows her line of sight to see Stacie with some guy who’s definitely trying to put the moves on her. He’s leaning onto the counter of the outdoor bar by the hotel pool, giving what he probably thinks is a charming smile.

“Careful, your face might stay like that forever,” Beca teases with a smirk when Aubrey’s aggressive glaring doesn’t let up.

It catches Chloe’s attention, causing her to sit up just a little to see what’s going on.

Beca’s comment snaps the blonde out of her intense glaring, instead directing a scowl at the younger. “What are you going on about?”

Beca twists her lips. “Uh, you’re glaring at the dude flirting with Stacie.”

“What?” Aubrey asks incredulously. “No I wasn’t!”

“You totally were.”

“Was not. Shut up, Beca.”

Beca turns to look at Chloe for backup.

The redhead nods vigorously. “You totes were.”

Beca looks back at Aubrey, smug and victorious because she’s got Chloe backing her up.

Aubrey scoffs and crosses her arms, turning her nose up to them. “You’re both being ridiculous.”

Chloe and Beca exchange a look that confirms that Aubrey’s definitely avoiding the issue here.

No one gets another word in because Stacie is casually strolling back with a drink, sipping out of it innocently as she plops back into her own chair on the opposite side of Aubrey.

“Have fun over there?” Aubrey asks, not glancing in Stacie’s direction as she picks up the book in her lap.

Stacie quirks an eyebrow. “What are you talking about? I just went to get a drink.”

Aubrey lets out a scoff, rolling her eyes behind lightly-tinted sunglasses. “You were getting pretty friendly with that guy at the bar.”

“You were totally glaring!” Beca exclaims, leaning over and pointing a finger in Aubrey’s face. “I knew it!”

Chloe laughs softly from behind Beca while Aubrey swats Beca’s finger away.

“I wasn’t.”

Stacie raises an eyebrow at Aubrey. “Oh really now?”

“I  _ wasn’t,” _ Aubrey says in a hard voice, glaring at Beca as she does so. She turns back to Stacie and adds, “Even if I was, you couldn’t blame me. That guy looked like a total douche. You could do better.”

“Oh I know I could,” Stacie says with a slight smirk.

“You’re so full of it,” Aubrey tells her with another scoff.

Beca and Chloe watch the interaction with interest, wondering when Aubrey and Stacie’s shifted to more playful than they’re accustomed to seeing.

“Don’t worry,” the brunette grins, leaning closer to Stacie with her sunglasses slipping down the bridge of her nose. Her bright green eyes are playful as they focus on the blonde. “He’s not my type anyway.”

Aubrey gives a hard eye roll before settling back into her chair and pulling her book up to her face. She doesn’t give Stacie a response, but her reaction seems to satisfy the other girl who smugly leans back down in her chair, happily sipping her drink.

Beca turns back to Chloe, who is still watching their other two friends with confusion and interest.

“Did you…” she begins in a quiet voice. “I’m not the only one who witnessed that, right?”

Chloe nods. “Weird,” she decides.

Beca nods in agreement. When she looks back at Stacie and Aubrey, they’re both respectfully entertaining themselves, Aubrey with her book and Stacie with her drink as she looks around the pool.

 

* * *

 

The rehearsal dinner is bigger than the bridal brunch, but Beca’s still surprised by how many people are already there when they arrive. Chloe’s quick to loop her arm in Beca’s, pulling her close as they make their way around.

“Is this basically everyone who was invited here?” Beca murmurs quietly. “There’s so many damn people.”

Chloe laughs softly as they follow Aubrey and Stacie to their assigned table for the night. “Hannah’s always wanted a big wedding,” she explains. “And it looks like she’s got it.”

Beca snorts quietly, leaning into Chloe as the other girl smiles. Chloe presses a kiss into Beca’s hairline and Beca can only hope her cheeks aren’t flushing at the soft and intimate gesture.

They sit at a table with Aubrey and Stacie along with two of Chloe’s guy cousins who are already married, wives in tow. Chloe lights up at the sight of them, and it makes Beca practically swoon as she watches Chloe excitedly hug them both with pure happiness on her face.

“You’re so fucking soft,” Stacie tells her with a smirk.

Beca snaps out of it, glaring at Stacie. “It’s called acting, ever heard of it?”

“Sure,” Stacie draws out, a shit-eating grin on her face as she sits.

“Fuck you.”

“Beca,” Chloe chides, sliding comfortably in the seat next to her best friend. “Language.”

Beca gapes, looking at Chloe then at Stacie, who is clearly loving every minute of this interaction.

“Yeah language,” Stacie echos, a faux look of innocence on her face.

“Plus,” the redhead continues, her voice dropping just a little. “I’m pretty sure I’m the only one who’s allowed to do that to you.”

At this, Beca’s eyes widen and her cheeks flush a deep red. She opens her mouth in shock only to close it again.

For a fleeting moment she thinks of the implications of Chloe’s comment.

“Damn, Chlo.”

Beca blinks to see both of Chloe’s cousins chuckling and giving Chloe what appears to be an impressed look. It registers that Chloe wasn’t all that quiet and that her cousins definitely heard her. It only makes Beca’s face heat up even further as she sinks into the seat.

Chloe only laughs, grinning at them both as she presses a kiss to Beca’s cheek, short and sweet.

And she knows it’s all part of the act. It’s not serious, not in the slightest, but Chloe sure knows how to make a girl - specifically Beca - squirm.

God, she wants to kill Chloe.

“So Chloe,” one of them - he’s got brown hair instead of red, Beca notes - says. “Are you going to introduce us to your girlfriend or what?”

Chloe laughs again, so bright and full and  _ happy _ it makes Beca’s irritation melt away. She turns to look at Beca, eyes shining as she introduces her to her cousins.

And dinner’s easy, really. Chloe tells their whole fake love story again, this time with Stacie adding the most unnecessary comments about how she just  _ knew _ they’d end up together - which Beca kicks her under the table for - and Aubrey adding on. Her cousins are cool, Beca supposes, and she can see how close they are and how she can find instances of Chloe in them, by the way the laugh or the jokes they tell or the way they all have those bright blue Beale eyes.

(Chloe’s eyes are the best, though.)

Chloe calls her babe and kisses her cheek and holds her hand under the table where no one can see and all these things feel normal to Beca. She doesn’t think twice about it, or the way that sometimes she catches Chloe looking at her.

(Stacie and Aubrey give them looks, but Beca ignores them.)

Beca isn’t sure how many hours have passed, but she’s two wine glasses in and Chloe and Aubrey excused themselves to the restroom a while ago. She’s sitting at the table talking idly with Stacie about nothing in particular when Aubrey returns.

“Where’s Chloe?” Beca asks when the redhead isn’t trailing behind her.

Aubrey frowns. “She got caught up talking to family,” she explains. “Or more like they bombarded her when we left the restroom.”

Beca’s lips form into a slight pout as she looks around the restaurant. Her falls finally fall to Chloe and she frowns at the sight she’s greeted with. The redhead looks uncomfortable as she speaks to two older women, both with their backs to Beca. The brunette is immediately mumbling a “be right back” to Stacie and Aubrey before she’s pushing out of her seat and making her way towards her best friend. She begins to pick up parts of the conversation as she approaches.

“...isn’t it a little late to be trying to get into vet school?”

“Don’t you have to do that right out of college?”

“Babe! There you are,” Beca says confidently, easily sliding into Chloe’s side as she nears.

Chloe looks a bit confused, but mostly relieved as she finds herself wrapping an arm around Beca comfortably, accepting the kiss on the cheek the brunette gives her.

(Beca doesn’t even think about how she doesn’t hesitate to kiss Chloe’s cheek.)

“Aubrey told me you’re getting caught up with family,” Beca continues, only then turning to the two women, who look at her with a bit of surprise. She chooses to introduce herself then with, “Hi, I’m Beca, Chloe’s girlfriend.”

It rolls off her tongue so easily, and she’s nervous because she’s still not quite used to this, hates making small talk with older people who are definitely judging her every move and word, but Chloe was struggling and Beca wasn’t about to leave her fake girlfriend and best friend to fend for herself.

Both women reach out to shake her head, putting on smiles Beca can tell are only for show. It’s then that Chloe speaks again.

“Right. Becs, these are my two aunts,” she explains, motioning to both of them. “Aunt Jane and Aunt Alice.”

“So nice to meet you,” Aunt Jane says in a tone that isn’t all that convincing.

“We were just talking to Chloe here about her decision to pursue vet school,” Aunt Alice explains.

Beca nods, a knowing smile on her face. “Isn’t it great?” she asks, fully aware that not even a moment ago, they were questioning Chloe’s life decisions.

She can feel how Chloe’s looking at her, with her brows slightly furrowed and the hint of a frown. Chloe isn’t quite following her train of thought, but Beca lets it be.

“We’re just a bit concerned,” Alice sighs, a little too dramatically for Beca’s liking. “It’s just that she already spent an extra three years in undergrad and then took two years to begin pursuing vet school.”

Beca smiles, a tight smile that’s becoming borderline a smirk that she wears so well. She nudges Chloe as she says, “Actually, Chloe’s been working as a vet tech at a clinic a few blocks away from our house. I hardly even see her she’s working so hard. She’s also applying to quite a few vet schools, including UC Davis, which is by far the top vet school in the country as far as I know.”

The two aunts look a little stunned, and Beca can’t help it now, she knows she looks smug.

“Becs,” Chloe mumbles, squeezing her side gently as she looks a little shy. “It’s really not that big of a deal.”

Beca looks up at her, eyes bright and smug look still on her face. “Of course it is,” she insists, then chuckles as she looks at the two older women in front of them. She leans forward a little, as if she’s got a secret. “She’s actually got the recommendation for the guy who runs the clinic she's working for. Chlo’s just _that_ good.”

She’s beaming as she pulls back, settling into Chloe’s side. Beca spares a glance at the redhead to find her looking completely amused by Beca’s little spiel.

“Oh well…that’s great dear,” Jane finally says.

Chloe beams. “Thank you, but if you excuse us, I believe we have to return to our table.”

She slips her arm away from Beca’s side to grab her hand instead, and Beca’s barely holding in her laughter as she pulls Chloe away from her aunts and towards their table.

“Great meeting you!” Beca calls over her shoulder.

Chloe giggles, immediately tugging Beca towards her. “Beca!”

Beca turns, grinning at Chloe. “Yes?”

“Did you see the look on their faces?” Chloe asks in awe, eyes wide and vibrant.

Beca can’t help the laugh that falls from her lips. She nods, squeezing Chloe’s hand in her own.

“Beca you really didn’t need to do that,” Chloe tells her, nothing but affection in her eyes. “I’m a big girl, you know.”

“Dude, no offense but your aunts suck,” Beca declares, to which Chloe shrugs in agreement. “You don’t deserve to be looked down on. You work so hard and like, you’re killing it and you put in the hours and study all these vet terms I can’t even say and they should know that, Chlo. Who the fuck cares if you spent a couple of extra years at Barden.”

Chloe doesn’t have a response for that, apparently - at least not verbal. Beca barely understands the way Chloe’s fingers slide under Beca’s chin and tilt her head up before the distance is closed and Chloe Beale is kissing her for the second time that day. It’s soft and sweet but somehow holds more meaning than the first one.

Beca’s barely kissing her back when Chloe pulls away, a small smile on her face.

Beca, on the other hand, is completely dazed.

Chloe just kissed her in the middle of this restaurant with family and other guests milling about.

Beca wants to kiss her again.

“Thank you,” Chloe murmurs, face still inches away from Beca’s. 

“For what?” Beca asks dumbly, voice barely above a whisper.

“For being the best fake girlfriend,” Chloe tells her, leaning forward to press a kiss to the bridge of Beca’s nose before she turns - still holding Beca’s hand - and leading her back to her table.

If Aubrey and Stacie noticed their little kiss, neither of them say a word.

Beca’s a bit dazed for the next few minutes of conversation, buzzing from the way Chloe’s lips felt on hers, feeling like she’s on fire when Chloe’s hand rests on her leg and she squeezes when she laughs.


	4. four

The plan was to return to the hotel after dinner and fall asleep.

At least, that’s what Beca had assumed.

Instead, she finds herself at some bar not too far away, surrounded by her friends and a bunch of other random women that are somehow associated with the one and only Hannah Beale.

“Come to the bars with us!” Hannah had pleaded with the four of them as the rehearsal dinner was coming to and end. “It’ll be so fun! It’s my last night as a free woman!”

And really, it would’ve been shitty to turn down the bride-to-be on her special weekend, so they all go.

It definitely was not her intention to take three shots of tequila and then follows it with two margaritas, but Chloe Beale and her impossible puppy dog pout have always gotten Beca to do things she’d otherwise never do.

Like when they fostered an actual dog for five months during Beca’s junior year in the Bella House.

Or, you know, when Chloe asked her to be her fake girlfriend for this whole event.

So it’s safe to say Beca is quite drunk, and it doesn’t help that Stacie is encouraging the whole event while Aubrey just laughs and sips on her second - or is it third? - martini.

Chloe is probably just as gone as Beca, having done an extra two shots with Stacie because for some reason the two of them still think this is college and are still annoyingly better at holding liquor than Beca ever will be.

(She’s fine with her beers and the occasional wine night with Chloe and Fat Amy in the apartment, thank you.)

The redhead sits impossibly close to Beca, and as usual, the drunker she gets, the handsier she is. So everything seems amplified to Beca, the way Chloe leans into her and the way Chloe is always touching her, whether it be a hand on her knee or thrown around her waist or a sloppy kiss on the cheek.

It’s intoxicating and Beca can’t tell if it’s from the alcohol or just being this close to Chloe constantly.

Some Top 40 hit that Beca’s heard way too many times as a music producer comes on and her initial reaction is to groan and roll her eyes, but she stops herself when Chloe’s eyes widen and she squeals.

“I love this song!” Chloe exclaims, and of course, Beca isn’t even slightly surprised by the statement. “Come on,” she says suddenly, hopping out of her stool and grabbing Beca’s hand. “Let’s dance.”

Beca hesitates, mainly because she’s not sure how dizzy she’ll be if she stands.

“Go on Mitchell,” Stacie says over the music. “Go dance with your _girlfriend.”_

There’s a teasing lilt at the end of Stacie’s sentence and she’s giving her that shit-eating grin. Beca only rolls her eyes before she’s following Chloe through the crowd of people.

She’s drunk and easily persuaded when it comes to Chloe looking at her with those pretty eyes, sue her.

Chloe sure knows how to get what she wants when it comes to Beca.

Chloe spins her and Beca can’t help but laugh when she does it before she’s falling into Chloe and they’re dancing like they always do when they’re drunk, Beca with her awkward bopping and Chloe going along with it as she smiles like Beca’s the only person that matters.

They dance for another two songs before Chloe is complaining about being tired, immediately reaching out and grabbing Beca’s hand to lead her around people, weaving expertly like she did when they went to parties or hit the bars in college, and Beca follows obediently, a dumb smile on her face.

Beca thinks Chloe’s leading them to the empty table in the far corner, but they don’t quite get there because Chloe trips on something - either herself or something on the ground - and Beca’s quickly taking another step forward as her hand tugs Chloe hand and her other comes around Chloe’s waist, steadying the older girl.

“Woah there,” Beca chuckles, helping the redhead back up. She tries to stifle her laughter “Are you good, Beale?”

Chloe is laughing, which Beca takes as a good sign, and she manages a nod as her other hand  lands against the wall next to them for extra support. Chloe’s laughing has always been infectious, even for Beca, and a moment later she’s laughing too, shaking her head and mumbling about what a dork Chloe Beale is.

“Shut up,” Chloe giggles, now standing up just fine on her own. She playfully shoves Beca.

Beca raises her eyebrows at her, traces of laughter still on her tongue. She shoves Chloe back, the redhead’s backside ending up against the wall that’s now behind her.

“Jerk,” Chloe pouts.

“You started it,” Beca points out, smirking.

They’re both very drunk and looking back, this is what Beca believes sparks the next set of actions. Beca thinks Chloe looks beautiful in this moment, small droplets of sweat on her forehead from dancing and hair just a bit of a mess. Chloe’s eyes her wide and honest, like looking at them tells you everything you need to know about her. There’s still a hint of a smile on her lips, and Beca’s eyes flicker down.

Once.

Chloe’s breathing is starting to slow, calming down from her fit of laughter.

Beca’s eyes flicker for a second time.

When she meets Chloe’s eyes again, they’re a bit darker than she remembers. She hasn’t seen this from Chloe before, something rare because Beca’s convinced she’s seen all of Chloe by now.

Her eyes start to flutter closed, and Beca isn’t sure who gets there first, but their lips meet and she feels Chloe immediately cupping her face and pull her closer.

Beca’s hands are instinctively reaching out, needing Chloe as close as possible. Both of her hands find purchase on Chloe’s hips, settling comfortably as she leans into Chloe, who has her back pressed firmly against the wall.

Her mind is hazy and it’s definitely a combination of the alcohol running through system and the way Chloe’s mouth moves against hers, and really Beca should think about what’s happening here, but she can’t even form a coherent thought as Chloe’s tongue swipes against her lower lip and Beca is quickly giving her access, almost audibly moaning when Chloe’s tongue is in her mouth, swiping and exploring.

Chloe tastes like tequila and a hint of her strawberry chapstick and Beca wants _more._ One of her arms snakes around Chloe’s waist, pressing the redhead flush against her. Chloe lets out a low moan in her mouth and Beca’s knees grow weak at the sound and the feeling.

The music becomes nothing but muffled noise as she feels more than hears Chloe’s breathing in her mouth, hot and heavy just like Beca feels. She understands the way Chloe’s lips feel against her own, how Chloe’s skin is hot to the touch under her fingers, how one of Chloe’s hands slides to Beca’s ass and finds its home there with no intention of leaving any time soon.

Beca isn’t sure how long they’re making out for, and even in her alcohol-induced haze she knows they shouldn’t be doing this, that this isn’t necessarily part of the “fake girlfriend” situation presented at hand, but Chloe tastes so good in her mouth and Chloe shows no signs of stopping so she allows herself to melt into it because deep down she knows she might never get this chance again.

It isn’t until she feels tapping on her shoulder and a “um, _hello!”_ that Beca almost irritably pulls away from Chloe, turning to face the offender. She’s about to snap a harsh remark when she finds Stacie standing there with Aubrey close behind her. They’re both looking at Beca and Chloe with mildly surprised expressions and that’s when Beca remembers where she is, when she remembers what she’s doing here.

She takes an awkward step back away from Chloe, eyes wide and blinking wildly as she looks from Chloe - who still seems to be in a daze from their makeout session - back to Stacie and Aubrey.

She doesn’t notice the way Stacie’s arm is hanging back, holding Aubrey’s hand behind her.

“We just wanted to tell you that we’re heading back to the hotel,” Stacie informs them loudly over the music.

Beca almost wants to snap at Stacie for interrupting probably the best makeout session she’s ever had with like, anyone, for this.

But then again, having Stacie interrupt them was probably for the best.

She can think straight again, and suddenly Beca’s sobered up.

She was full on making out with Chloe Beale.

And she wants to do it again.

“Oh,” Beca says dumbly in response to Stacie. “Um, okay.”

“Will you guys be okay getting back by yourselves?” Aubrey asks over Stacie’s shoulder, shooting a slightly concerned expression towards Chloe.

Chloe has apparently snapped out of her haze because she’s pushing off the wall and nodding. “Yeah, we’ll be fine,” she insists, then looks at Beca. “Actually…”

Bright blue eyes regard Beca with a question. They’re doing that thing again, the one where they talk without any words. Beca’s so used to this she doesn’t even question it at all. She knows what Chloe’s asking, and Beca thinks she’s had enough of an eventful night to last.

She nods at Chloe, who seems to agree, and they look back at Stacie and Aubrey. “We’re ready to head back,” she informs them.

Stacie snorts. “Please, don’t let us ruin all the fun you’re having - which, you were having a lot of fun before I stepped in.”

Beca flushes at the mention of what happened moments ago, the feeling of Chloe in her mouth, on her skin, hands in her hair - all of it rushing back to her. She’s immediately looking away from the smirking Stacie and Aubrey, instead opting to look at the floor.

She misses Chloe’s initial reaction to the comment because she’s doing a very good job of looking away, but she hears Chloe say, “Let’s go to the hotel” and Beca can only guess Chloe offered no more than an eye roll at Stacie’s comment because Stacie only chuckles.

Chloe’s immediately grabbing Beca’s hand and the brunette looks up to see her already leading her out of the bar, waving a goodbye to Hannah as she does so.

They walk a few blocks back to the hotel, silence sitting between everyone for the most part. Stacie and Aubrey aren’t holding hands anymore, but they walk close together about two feet ahead of Beca and Chloe.

Chloe holds Beca’s hand and hums quietly as they walk. Beca’s sure she’s sober by the time the night air hits her. As they walk, she tries to figure out what the hell just happened. She and Chloe just spent god knows how long making out and Chloe’s acting like it didn’t even happen. Nothing about her demeanor is different, she’s acting just like she was before it ever happened.

When Beca thinks about it, she figures that girlfriends makeout in bars all the time. She’s never been one of those people herself, but she guesses it happens.

So yeah, she figures Chloe went along with it for the sake of it being part of the grand scheme of things. Girlfriends make out all the time.

It’s still quiet in the elevator when they arrive at the hotel, Chloe offering a quiet good night when the elevator dings at their floor. They leave Aubrey and Stacie behind, Beca opening the door to their hotel room before Chloe’s letting go of her hand and immediately going to her suitcase.

They get ready for bed in silence, moving around each other naturally as always. There’s something heavy between them now though, Beca can tell. She tries not to think about the way Chloe moaned in her mouth or how Chloe grabbed her ass.

It’s not until they’re in bed, nothing but darkness around them, that Chloe speaks.

“You’re a good kisser.”

Beca blinks, turning to Chloe in surprise. “What?”

Chloe shrugs, pulling the sheets over her as she turns to face Beca and adds, “I just thought you should know.”

Beca wonders if somehow Chloe’s still drunk, even after they both has a glass of water before crawling into bed. Chloe’s looking at Beca and there’s no intent behind her expression, she’s being genuine about it all.

“Oh uh, thank you,” she says slowly, still unsure of what the hell is happening.

Chloe has always been a bit of an enigma, Beca’s known this. She just figured after years of knowing her, Beca would be able to understand where Chloe’s randomness comes from.

Chloe’s ocean blue eyes are clear and she looks at Beca as if she’s waiting for more.

Beca doesn’t know what to say, unsure of what else Chloe could want from her. But then again, Chloe always ends up surprising her in one way or another.

“You’re not mad about the bar, right?”

Beca frowns. “Why would I be mad?”

“I don’t know,” Chloe admits, eyes momentarily looking away. “I just...I don’t know.”

“I’m not mad,” Beca promises. When Chloe doesn’t meet her eyes, her frown deepens. She reaches out, gently moving Chloe’s face so she’s facing Beca again. “Chloe, hey.”

Chloe finally meets her eyes again, still blue and bright as ever.

Beca still doesn’t know what she wants.

This time, she’s positive that it’s Chloe who leans in.

She’s pretty sure they’re both sober so there’s no excuse this time, there’s no reason to fall back on that Beca can make sense of. Chloe is kissing her and there’s no reason she should be.

There’s no one here to fool.

It’s only them.

Despite everything she understands, Beca kisses her back.

And they kiss gently this time, like the moment is so fragile it could break at any moment. Beca’s afraid Chloe might pull away, might realize what she’s doing and say she’s sorry and that she totally didn’t mean it like that.

Except she doesn’t, and instead of worrying Beca lets herself melt into Chloe completely. Chloe’s kisses are sweet and gentle and Beca feels like she’s right where she’s supposed to be. She shifts so she’s almost on top of Beca, but not so her weight is crushing her. Beca’s hand slides up and immediately grabs Chloe’s waist, realizing that Chloe’s wearing one of her big t-shirts and instead of fabric she’s meeting skin.

Chloe doesn’t seem to mind at all, instead nipping at Beca’s bottom lip.

Her hands slip under Beca’s shirt, softly caressing the skin she finds. Beca initially takes in a sharp breath because Chloe’s hands have always been so cold, but she settles into the feeling of fingers running across her skin quickly because it just feels so _nice._

It goes on like that for what feels like forever, the two of them just innocently making out, Chloe occasionally ducking her head to kiss a line along Beca’s jaw or trail kisses along her neck. The only sounds are their heavy breathing and the occasional soft moan from either.

Chloe smiles into her kisses sometimes, and Beca can’t help but smile too because if she’s being honest, Chloe just makes her _feel_ something she can’t quite describe. It’s nothing she’s quite felt with anyone else, not Jesse or her two exes in high school. Not those three dumb tinder dates she’s gone on since breaking up with Jesse, either.

No, Chloe is something completely new and although it’s somewhat scary, it’s comforting and _safe._

Being with Chloe, it makes her feel safe.

Eventually Chloe gets tired, letting out a yawn as she pulls away from Beca’s lips.

“I’m sleepy,” she murmurs, leaning down to press a soft kiss to Beca’s exposed collar bone before she’s slipping away and settling back into her original position on the bed.

Beca isn’t quite sure how to respond, but she expects Chloe’s arm draping around her body anyway; it’s habitual.

“Good night Chlo,” she whispers.

“Night Becs,” she answers, pulling Beca into her so Beca’s back is comfortably against her front.

Beca lets out a quiet sigh, her thoughts going a mile a minute. She feels Chloe press a kiss on her shoulder through her t-shirt and tries not to smile.

(She thinks she’s already dreaming when she hears Chloe whisper “I love you” almost half an hour later.)

 

* * *

 

When Beca wakes up, the sunlight is streaming through their window.

She winces only slightly, turning so her back to the window only to find that the other side of the bed is empty.

There’s a slight pout on her lips as she rubs her eyes and tries to listen for the water running in the bathroom, but it’s silent in the room so she knows Chloe’s not in there. Begrudgingly, she’s reaching out for her phone and finds three texts from Chloe from almost an hour ago.

 

* * *

 

 **Chloe Beale** **  
** _iMessage_ _  
_ _Today_ 7:15 AM

I’m not dead, I’m working out with Bree

Btw, I can’t find my headphones so I’m using yours

Thanks Becs :)

 

* * *

 

Beca rolls her eyes with a chuckle. She fires off a response to Chloe - nothing more than an eyeroll emoji - before she’s tossing her phone onto the bed and trying to make sense of last night’s events.

She made out with Chloe.

Twice.

Once drunk, once - basically - sober.

Beca isn’t quite sure what to make of it. She doesn’t know what it means, and she isn’t sure how much of it is acting. And for the first time in a long time, she can’t get a read on what Chloe seems to be thinking in those moments.

This much she understands: kissing Chloe Beale feels all kinds of right.

She knows that it shouldn’t make sense because Chloe is her best friend that she doesn’t recall ever having romantic feelings for, but yet kissing Chloe makes sense. And it may be no secret that Beca’s into girls as well as guys - thank you Kommissar episodes from her senior year at Barden - but that doesn’t apply to Chloe.

It doesn’t apply to Chloe because things with Chloe have always just been this way. Hugs and cuddles and kisses on her head have always been normal around Chloe. That’s just who Chloe Beale is, a ray of sunshine with no personal boundaries whatsoever.

And Beca, initially scowling and grumbling about it at first, doesn’t mind it at all.

She doesn’t think too much about the way Chloe holds her hand sometimes when they’re in public, or how Chloe is an insistent cuddler by nature, or how Chloe hugs her extra tight when Beca’s feeling sad.

Chloe has always been _Chloe_ and Beca knows that.

Chloe kisses Emily’s forehead all the time. She holds Stacie’s hand when they’re drunk and trying not to lose each other. She cuddles with Jessica and Ashley or really anyone who wants to cuddle during movie nights. She hugs Aubrey, like, all the time.

It’s _just Chloe._

But even Beca knows kissing your best friend should never feel like that.

She wants to make sense of what the hell is happening to her, but she hates thinking about feelings and the implications of making out with your best friend before you go to bed together so instead she crawls out of bed and makes her way to the bathroom, deciding to push it to the back of her mind for now.

Beca hits play on the first playlist she sees on her phone and lets the music and the sounds of the shower drown out her thoughts for awhile.

When she exists the shower almost half an hour later, she can hear movement on the other side of the door and knows Chloe is home. She takes her time getting dressed, her heart pounding a bit louder because she doesn’t know what Chloe’s possibly going to say when she sees Beca.

It wouldn’t surprise Beca in the slightest if Chloe tries to make her talk about it.

Beca won’t initiate it, though. She’s not going to be the one who brings it up. That’s always been Chloe; it’s just how they operate.

Taking a deep breath after she’s pulling on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, she pushes the bathroom door open to find Chloe humming softly as she sits on their bed and scrolls through her phone.

Chloe lifts her head to look at Beca, a bright smile on her face. “Good morning Becs. I put your headphones back.”

“Morning,” Beca mumbles in reply warily. “Thanks.”

She’s decided she’s going to see how Chloe acts before she assumes anything.

So she tries to act as normal as she can.

“How was working out with Aubrey?”

Chloe beams. “Great!” she exclaims, tossing her phone to the side. “It’s nice to have a workout buddy again.”

She looks at Beca teasingly, the playfulness evident in her voice and shining through her expression. Beca breathes a little easier, deciding that nothing has changed in the way Chloe’s acting towards her.

Maybe Chloe _was_ still drunk last night.

“You’ll never get me to run voluntarily, Beale,” Beca quips, rolling her eyes.

Chloe lets out a dramatic sigh. “My biggest failure, really.”

Beca laughs, tossing a pillow in Chloe’s direction. It hits her arm and promptly falls to the ground. Chloe shakes her head at her, but she’s smiling.

Yeah, Beca thinks they’re okay.

“Go shower,” she tells Chloe, scrunching up her nose. “You smell.”

“Fine,” Chloe pouts. “But get dressed. We’re going to brunch with Bree and Stace when I’m ready.”

She makes her exit to the bathroom and shuts the door.

Beca lets out a long sigh.

She and Chloe are okay. They’re totally fine. Chloe isn’t being weird, so Beca won’t be weird. But still, Beca could’ve sworn Chloe was very much sober last night. And Chloe likes _talking_ about things, _things_ that happened and how _things_ make her feel.

There’s something unsettling at the pit of Beca’s stomach, something that can’t quite resolve knowing she and Chloe full on made out last night in bed and they aren’t talking about it.

Despite this, Beca’s pushes it aside, pretends it doesn’t matter because she and Chloe are best friend and that’s all that really counts, so she moves towards her suitcase and picks up a pair of jeans and shirt.

 

* * *

 

Beca is shooting off emails for work on her phone when Chloe finally exits the bathroom later that day, heels clicking on the bathroom tile before she steps over onto the carpet of their hotel room.

“About time,” Beca mumbles jokingly, typing away on her phone with her brows furrowed. “I was starting to think we might end up being late to the wedding.”

“Ha-ha,” Chloe responds dryly. “You’re so funny, Becs.”

As Beca hits send she looks up to give Chloe a cheeky smile, but it doesn’t quite reach her lips and her breath gets stuck in her throat when her eyes fall on her best friend.

Chloe’s wearing a soft pink high neck sleeveless dress that falls a few inches above her knees. It hugs her middle tightly, showing off her figure and the fact that - yes, Chloe does work out often. Her red hair falls in soft waves past her shoulders and down her back.

And Beca’s always known that Chloe’s beautiful - she’s had to look at the girl for like, five or six years now - but something about Chloe right now looks heavenly and Beca wants to take in every bit of it.

“Wow,” she says breathlessly, eyes wide and reverent as she looks at Chloe. “You...you look so good, Chlo.”

Beca hardly notices the way Chloe’s cheeks ever so slightly flush at the comment, how Chloe looks down momentarily before her bright ocean-like eyes are looking at Beca again.

“Thanks,” she smiles, taking in Beca’s appearance as the small girl stands. “My fake girlfriend is stunning too, you know.”

Beca rolls her eyes, ignoring the way her blush creeps up her neck. “Yeah, whatever.”

Chloe shakes her head, smiling brightly as she walks towards Beca. “I’m serious,” she insists, reaching to tuck a loose strand of hair behind Beca’s ear. “You’re so beautiful, Beca.”

The way Chloe tells her she’s beautiful is something Beca can’t quite place. It resonates in her chest, a warm feeling that quickly spreads and she knows her cheeks are now tinted pink and that her words are stuck in her throat.

She clears her throat, eyes cutting away from Chloe and to the edge of their bed. “I - uh, thanks.”

Chloe smiles and Beca catches it out of the corner of her eyes and she feels so weird and has to blame it entirely on the weird events of the past twenty-four hours because when did Chloe make her feel like this? Chloe’s always been able to make Beca blush but now she feels like she might collapse if Chloe keeps looking at her like that.

“We should go get Aubrey and Stacie from their room,” she announces, reaching over to grab her purse and shoving her phone in it. “We don’t want to cut it too close.”

And just like that, their moment is broken. Chloe says “okay, let’s go” and Beca feels like she can breathe like a normal person as she makes her way out the door.

Chloe is telling her what she can expect from the Beale family at the wedding - “Oh, Hannah’s mom is _definitely_ going to cry through the whole ceremony and then get so wine drunk she’ll dance with anyone she sees” - as they take the elevator a floor down to meet up with Stacie and Aubrey.

“Your family sounds like they’re all partiers,” Beca laughs as they make their way towards Aubrey and Stacie’s room. “Not surprised.”

Chloe just grins at her as she says, “Where do you think my infamous jiggle juice recipe was perfected?”

Beca snorts at the comment as they come to a stop at the right door. It’s bolted open, the top lock held out so the door doesn’t shut. She takes a look at Chloe before she’s pushing the door open and entering the hotel room, Chloe following close behind.

“I swear to God Stacie if you aren’t ready-” Beca starts, but she’s brought to a halt, both via her feet and her words.

Her jaw drops as she processes what her eyes are seeing. Aubrey is pressed up against the wall by their bed, Stacie pinning her against it. Stacie’s head is dropped, and Beca assumes she’s leaving messy kisses along Aubrey’s neck. One of Aubrey’s legs is hooked around Stacie, keeping her against the blonde.

Aubrey’s the first of the two to hear Beca and see their two friends enter, and her eyes are suddenly wide as sauce pans as her leg immediately drops back down and she’s shoving Stacie off of her at her shoulders.

“Oh my god!” Beca hears behind her, and she turns to see Chloe staring in complete and utter shock, eyebrows raised almost as high as her hairline.

“Shit,” Stacie hisses, turning to face the two intruders.

Aubrey looks out of breath and positively mortified as her wide eyes look from Beca to Chloe. Beca would think it’s hilarious if she wasn’t slightly scarred from seeing _Stacie_ all over Aubrey in that way.

There’s an awkward beat of silence, as if they’re all waiting for someone to take charge of the situation. Stacie - usually relaxed and carefree about situations like these - is biting her lip nervously as she hovers somewhat closely to Aubrey.

“Okay,” Beca finally speaks, because it’s evident no one else will. She’s not even sure if Chloe _can_ form proper words by the way she looks. “What the hell is going on here?”

“We can explain,” Aubrey immediately blurts out, pushing off of the wall and taking a step towards Chloe.

She looks so panicked and frazzled that Beca would find all of this amusing if she wasn’t confused beyond belief.

Beca gasps, a realization coming to mind. “Oh my god, is this why you were being weird when we asked you to bring Stacie? Because you’re fuck buddies or friends with benefits or something?”

Stacie and Aubrey exchange a look, but Aubrey’s immediately shaking her head.

“No - what? We’re not-”

“We’re _girlfriends,”_ Stacie finally says, cutting the frazzled Aubrey off. “Aubrey’s my _girlfriend,_ Beca.”

“What?” Beca frowns, looking between the helpless Aubrey and slightly frustrated Stacie. “You’re...what?”

She turns to look at Chloe, but the redhead is still staring at their two friends with wide eyes and doesn’t look like she’ll be speaking any time soon.

“How did this - what the fuck?”

Stacie sighs, reaching out and taking Aubrey’s hands in hers, intertwining their fingers. “It’s...still kind of new,” she admits, thumb running along the back of Aubrey’s hand. “It’s only been a few months, really.”

“A few months?” Chloe repeats, finally finding her voice again.

Aubrey’s lips twist as she looks at Chloe and explains, “I wanted to tell you.”

“We both did,” Stacie interjects.

Aubrey nudges her with her shoulder before continuing. “But it was so new and we were trying to make sure it would work with the distance and everything and - I’m sorry,” she frowns. “We just...wanted to have it all figured out before we told anyone.”

Stacie nods. “Yeah, like what if we decided it didn’t work and ended it after telling everyone we were together? That would’ve been fucking awkward.”

Beca resists an eye roll and snort at Stacie’s comment. Instead she eyes Chloe carefully, trying to figure out what she’s thinking.

Aubrey bites her lip. “Please don’t be mad.”

“I’m...not mad,” Chloe says slowly.

Aubrey looks visibly relieved and even Stacie lets out a quiet sigh of relief. Beca stifles a laugh at both of their reactions. She knows they were both expecting a full-on Chloe meltdown.

“I’m just confused, I guess,” Chloe frowns. “How did this even happen?”

Beca nods, eyebrows furrowing together. “Yeah actually, how did you two end up dating?”

Stacie shrugs. “I mean I always thought Aubrey’s hot. We all know that.”

This time Beca snorts. “Yeah it’s one of the first things you said to me when we both became Bellas.”

“And I still stand by that fact,” Stacie grins.

Aubrey rolls her eyes, reaching out to playfully push Stacie’s shoulder. “I was on a business trip and Stacie had a science conference and we were both coincidentally at the same hotel,” she explains. “We kind of had a dinner date and...I don’t know, we ended up visiting each other a lot and things kind of just...happened.”

“So you’re totally okay with settling down?” Beca asks Stacie curiously. “No more looking for prey?”

Stacie laughs, walking over and wrapping her arms around Aubrey’s shoulders from behind. “Those days are over,” she confirms, pressing a kiss to Aubrey’s cheek. “She’s got me locked down.”

Beca scrunches her nose. “Okay, gross.”

Aubrey smirks at how visually uncomfortable Beca seems be at Stacie and Aubrey being so affectionate with each other, but focuses her attention back on Chloe. Her eyes are tainted with concern as she asks, “Are you sure you’re not mad?”

Chloe nods, twisting her lips just a little. “Positive. It’s just...I don’t know, unexpected. But I’m happy for you both.”

Aubrey smiles at her and reaching over to squeeze Chloe’s arm affectionately. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

Chloe shakes her head. “Don’t be. You know I’m always happy when you’re happy.” She quickly turns her attention Stacie. “If you do anything to hurt her-”

“Yeah yeah I know,” Stacie cuts her off with a roll of her eyes. “You’ll kill me. Don’t worry Red, I know you’ve got Aubrey’s back no matter what.”

Chloe smiles knowingly at her, no longer perplexed at the situation.

“Okay people,” Beca announces. “Now that we’ve got that figured out, we’re going to be late if we don’t get moving now.”

Aubrey scoffs at Beca. She rolls her eyes, but begins to head out of the hotel room anyway, Stacie’s trailing closely behind her. Beca falls into step with Chloe not too far behind them. She waits for Chloe to say something, well aware that Chloe’s still trying to process it as much as she is.

“I guess in retrospect it makes sense,” Chloe hums quietly. “They’ve been weird since we got here.”

Beca nods. “I mean, I get it now - why Stacie hardly even questioned me when I texted her about coming, but they’re just so...different.”

Chloe shrugs, watching their friends in front of them. Beca looks to see Aubrey grinning widely at whatever Stacie is telling her. She notices the way Stacie can’t seem to keep her hands off of Aubrey, currently with her arm hooked around Aubrey’s as they walk, Stacie’s fingers playing with Aubrey’s.

And it makes sense now. The jealousy at the pool, the way Aubrey and Stacie would quietly chat amongst the two of them, secret smiles and all.

“Yeah,” Chloe agrees. “But so are we and we still work together.”

Beca looks back at Chloe now, questions in her eyes. Chloe is still watching Stacie and Aubrey, not tearing her eyes away. Beca wants to ask her what she means. She wants to know if Chloe means as best friends or fake girlfriends or whatever they’re treading in those quiet moments Beca still can’t seem to understand.

She doesn’t get her answer though because they reach the elevator and Stacie is quickly pulling the two of them back into conversation. Stacie pokes fun at Beca, but Beca’s quick with a quip of her own right back and Beca knows she’s lost her chance to push the subject further. Chloe is laughing at the two of them, eyes bright and smile wide.

Chloe’s words ring in her mind constantly.


	5. five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi friends! As you've probably noticed, the chapter count has gone down. The farther along I get in this story, the easier it is for me to see how it's ending. So, I've brought the story down to 7 chapters - we're almost there! Also, I've created a [playlist](https://open.spotify.com/user/1219143842/playlist/4lYsNJ6qdIB0WPdGApPV39?si=Z1Aej5BeQzuVJzJPlRDNxA) to go along with this fic, so listen and follow if you'd like!

Beca has to admit: the wedding is beautiful.

They host it at an outdoor venue, and the warm Virginia air blows through quietly. Chloe tears up multiple times throughout the ceremony. Aubrey is smiling adoringly towards Hannah. Stacie and Beca - though they barely know Hannah Beale - are equally as happy for the bride and groom.

Once they’ve made it to the reception hall, Chloe is quickly grabbing everyone drinks and Stacie is all too eagerly tossing hers back. Beca is mostly by Chloe’s side for the night, finding it increasingly easy to play the part of Chloe’s long-time girlfriend. She supposes that being best friends has always helped, but some of Chloe’s family keeps looking at them in some sort of weird way, like they know something she doesn’t.

It irritates the brunette a little, a frown tugging at her lips.

But she can’t find herself bothered much longer because Chloe is happy and dancing and a genuinely happy Chloe Beale is all Beca every wants, really.

(It’s also very hard to be irritated when Chloe keeps looking at her with a soft smile, like she and Beca are right where they’re supposed to be, like Beca is her most favorite person in the world.)

She doesn’t argue when Chloe continues to wander off to the bar, returning with two drinks in hand - one for her, one for Beca. Beca just laughs and drinks the offered glass without complaint - she’s at a wedding for crying out loud.

“Thank you,” she murmurs when Chloe returns to the table with what Beca thinks is her fifth - sixth? - drink since they had dinner.

“Did you guys turn into alcoholics in New York?” Stacie asks teasingly, raising an eyebrow at the two across the table.

Beca narrows her eyes at her in return. “I need all the drinks I can get if I’m going to deal with you two all night,” she retorts.

She motions her hand toward Aubrey and Stacie, taking in the way they’re sitting. Their chairs are scooted closer together, Stacie’s arm resting comfortably on the back of Aubrey’s seat. Stacie’s leaning in towards her girlfriend, Aubrey somehow fitting perfectly under her reach.  Beca still thinks it’s kind of odd, but she notes a certain gentleness Aubrey exhibits towards Stacie and can’t find it in her to poke fun at them.

Stacie is Beca’s best friend right behind Chloe, and with all the crazy boy - and girl - drama Stacie dealt with throughout college and the flings and failed attempts at going steady with others, Beca’s just happy that Stacie’s found someone that keeps up with her.

Maybe she should’ve known it all along, the way Stacie had always made it a point to say hello to Aubrey when she was on the phone with Chloe throughout the years, how she still would slide in a flirtatious comment towards the blonde over the years.

Stacie pulls Beca out of her musing by making a face at her. Beca sticks her tongue out right back, but she feels Chloe’s gentle squeeze on her knee that tells her to stop.

Beca turns to Chloe to say something - probably about how annoying Stacie is because clearly  _ Stacie _ started it - but one of Chloe’s relatives approaches the table and takes a seat, taking away Chloe’s attention along with Aubrey’s, so Beca settles for taking sips from her drink and keeping her focus on the conversation instead of the way Chloe’s hand is resting rather comfortably right above her knee.

Chloe laughs loudly at something that’s been said and hides her face in Beca’s neck for a moment, her lips pressing the softest of kisses on her skin.

Beca reminds herself to breathe.

It goes like that for most of the night, but it’s a whole lot easier with alcohol in her system and the way Chloe makes her feel like everything is going to be okay, like maybe they’re  _ actually _ dating, just like everyone here thinks.

(But that would be crazy, though.

Chloe’s her best friend.

Even if their kisses linger just a little longer than usual.

Beca thinks she might be overthinking it, but the thought nags at her every time they kiss in front of others.)

Hannah and her new husband are in the center of the room dancing together for their first dance as a married couple when Beca turns to look at Chloe. She notices the way Chloe’s blue eyes watch them closely with longing, how Chloe can’t seem to pull her gaze away from them even after the first two minutes. Beca’s lips tug into a frown slowly, slightly concern masking her features.

Chloe lets out an almost silent sigh, eyes still following Hannah.

Beca nudges her lightly with her hip, forcing the redhead’s attention away from her cousin and on her instead.

“Are you okay?” Beca asks quietly.

Chloe’s looks at Beca for a beat before she lets out another sigh, eyes wandering back to the dancing bride and groom.

“She’s always had it all,” Chloe says wistfully. “The ideal boyfriends, the perfect grades, the best degree...Of course she find her perfect match and has the most beautiful wedding.”

Beca’s frown deepens slightly. “Chloe, you guys are two different people.”

“I know,” Chloe admits, eyes still following Hannah. “It’s not supposed to be a competition. I get that. It’s just that it somehow always seems like one.”

There a silence between them for a moment, Beca looking at Chloe while Chloe still looks on. Beca’s never really been good at this, the whole deep and personal kind of thing, but she’ll try. She’ll always try for Chloe.

“You may not have found the love of your life or whatever, but you have a pretty cool fake girlfriend,” Beca offers, that wry smile she often wears gracing her lips.

Chloe turns to face her again, her lips turning up at Beca’s comment. Her eyes are bright and her grin widens as she replies, “Yeah, I think I’ve got the best fake girlfriend out there.”

Something about the way Chloe says it, paired with the way her impossibly expressive bright eyes are focused on Beca and the softness of her features - makes the pit of Beca’s stomach twist. She isn’t sure what this is, what this means. She knows that this is pretend, that Chloe is her best friend and they’re pretending for the sake of Chloe’s family. Despite this, she thinks about how pretty Chloe looks and how gentle her voice is.

And true to herself, Beca panics.

“Heard she’s a really good best friend too,” she quips quickly, clearing her throat just a bit. “She’s put up with your for like, six years.”

Something in Chloe’s expression flickers, but Beca doesn’t quite catch it before it’s gone. She shakes her head fondly at the comment, reaching out and tugging Beca’s hand into hers.

“Come on,” she says, still looking at Beca with bright eyes. “Dance with me.”

Beca looks past Chloe, noticing the way others have joined the bride and groom on the dance floor. She looks back at Chloe, who gives her wide eyes and a lopsided smile. She sighs, shaking her head despite the smile on her lips.

“Lead the way, Beale.”

(She’s always had a hard time saying no to Chloe.)

Chloe lets out a soft squeal of excitement as she gently tugs Beca along before sliding an arm around her waist and pulling her close. Beca only laughs, unable to pretend she’s annoyed with her best friend when they’re so close and Chloe is so beautiful.

 

* * *

 

Chloe gets pulled away from Beca by her family for a while, leaving Beca with Stacie and Aubrey. Stacie is immediately handing Beca more drinks, insisting that she should have “just one more.” Aubrey scolds her, but doesn’t stop Beca from taking the drinks when Stacie offers.

Despite the newfound relationship between Stacie and Aubrey, Beca feels like they’re just Stacie and Aubrey still, and even though they’re affectionate here and there, it’s just three friends catching up at a wedding and Beca feels a sense of normalcy.

Some top 40 song comes on and Stacie gasps, eyes going wide as she says, “I fucking love this song!” before she’s pulling Aubrey up and out of her seat and towards the dance floor, leaving Beca by herself.

“No, I’m good thanks! Alright cool, I guess I’ll just stay here,” Beca calls after them in a dry tone, knowing full well they can’t hear her.

She rolls her eyes, a soft chuckle coming from her lips as she watches them run off. She takes in the scene around her for a moment and wondering if she should text Chloe to see where she is when someone slides in next to her.

“How did you end up all alone?”

Beca turns to find the woman of the hour in the seat next to her. Hannah’s beaming at Beca, and the playful edge in her voice reminds her an awful lot of Chloe.

“Chloe’s somewhere around here,” Beca laughs, shrugging. “Aubrey and Stacie ran off to dance.”

Hannah laughs as well, eyes searching the crowd until they find Stacie and Aubrey, both laughing and dancing without a care in the world. “They’re cute,” she murmurs.

Beca only hums in soft agreement as she watches them too.

“Chloe’s outside by the way,” Hannah adds, meeting Beca’s gaze again. “Said something about fresh air.”

“Oh” is all Beca says. She pauses, wondering if she should go check on Chloe, but Hannah is opening her mouth to speak again.

“When do you think she realized she’s in love with you?”

Beca blinks, not quite sure she’s hearing right.

“What?”

“Do you think it was before or after you started dating?”

Beca is even more baffled by the question, convinced that the drinks are starting to really hit her now because there’s no way she’s actually having this conversation right now. She does attempt an answer as she stutters, “I...uh, I don’t know?”

“It’s just that Chloe always talked about you so fondly with these big, shining eyes. Every time we caught up there always was a new story involving you. You were always more to her, Beca,” Hannah explains with a shrug, like this is the simplest thing in the world. “And now, seeing you two together after all the stories...Well, it all makes sense. I think she’s found her better half. It’s you.”

Beca simply stares at Hannah for a few moments. She feels a bit out of sorts and this time she’s sure it’s the alcohol and not just the things Hannah’s telling her. Hannah seems unbothered or doesn’t even notice, instead reaching over to grab a wine glass from a server passing by before taking a long sip.

Beca isn’t sure how to respond - and to be quite honest she’s still trying to process that information - but all she can think about is how she has to find Chloe.

She recalls that Hannah mentioned her cousin is outside and Beca’s body is moving before her brain can catch up.

“Uh, excuse me. I’m just - gonna, uh, excuse me,” she manages as she practically knocks her chair back before immediately making her way out of the venue.

Before Beca knows it, she’s hit with the soft Virginia breeze and lights are replaced with the moon and the couple of stars she can see. She notices Chloe’s figure a few yards away sitting in one of the white painted wooden chairs that were used for the ceremony hours ago.

She approaches slowly, taking the spot next to Chloe.

“You okay?” she asks quietly. “Hannah told me you came out here.”

Chloe turns, lips forming into a small smile when she realizes it’s Beca. “Yeah,” she nods with a sigh. “Sometimes my family is a lot - in a good way, though.”

Beca nods in understanding. Being around the Beale family for the past couple of days makes being with Chloe in the early days of their friendship seem like a piece of cake.

“Yeah...totally get that,” Beca murmurs.

“Yeah?”

Beca nods again, a quick one this time. “Mhmm, yeah. I uh….really do.”

Chloe gives her a lopsided smile. “Bec-a,” she sing songs. “I think you’re a little drunk.”

Beca gapes. “What? No way, dude.”

“You’re rambling and also stuttering,” the redhead, points out.

Chloe’s seen many sides of Beca, and drunk Beca is no exception. Beca curses inwardly at how well the redhead knows her after all this time.

(Not that she should be surprised, though.

Chloe’s like, her best friend ever.

Her  _ pretty _ best friend.

She has eyes.)

“Shut up,” Beca pouts, a small scowl on her face.

Chloe only laughs, soft and light in a way that makes Beca’s chest ache in a pleasant way. The sound of it makes Beca’s scowl suddenly soften, her head tilting ever so slightly to get a better look at Chloe.

“What?” Chloe asks after a few beats of silence, her big eyes looking at Beca curiously.

“I…”

Beca isn’t sure how she was going to continue that sentence because something about the way Chloe’s looking at her makes her body move before her brain can catch up once again. Chloe leans the slightest bit closer and Beca’s eyes flicker to her lips in an agonizingly heated manner.

Her mind flashes back to last night, the way she acquainted herself with Chloe’s lips in their dark hotel room. How their lips traded kisses back and forth, like secrets they’ve been waiting to tell.

“Becs?”

She sees rather than hears Chloe’s lips form her name, and it’s the last thing Beca remembers before she’s leaning forward just a few inches and all but melting against Chloe’s mouth.

This time Beca undoubtedly knows she’s the one who kisses Chloe; Beca knows this for sure.

If Chloe is taken by surprise at all, she doesn’t show it. Instead, her hand comes up against Becas jaw in a steady manner and kisses Beca back like it’s only natural. Her lips move against Beca’s so confidently, like after this whole weekend she’s figured out how to Beca’s knees a little weak with just the slightest parting of her lips.

Beca momentarily forgets that they’re out in the open, that there’s a wedding reception inside that they should be taking part in. All she understands is that she wants more of Chloe in any way possible, that she  _ must _ have Chloe as close as she can. She shifts slightly, angling her body more towards Chloe and when Chloe’s hand grips firmly at her waist, Beca’s moving into her lap, practically straddling Chloe in the chair.

Chloe’s other hand that was holding Beca’s jaw immediately slides down to grip the other side of Beca’s waist and hold her in place. Beca surges forward, hands coming up to grasp either side of Chloe’s face gently. She lets out a soft moan when Chloe’s hand roams against the exposed skin of her thigh and Chloe is immediately taking advantage, swiping her tongue in Beca’s mouth hotly.

Beca knows that all the drinking she’s been doing tonight paired with the way Chloe’s exploring her mouth is sending her into overdrive, unable to focus on much else besides the fact she doesn’t want this to stop, wants to keep tasting Chloe, wants to feel her underneath her touch.

There’s the smallest part of her mind that’s screaming at her to stop. It’s telling her that she shouldn’t go down this road, that this somehow doesn’t end well.

(Because Chloe is her best friends.

Best friends don’t makeout in the open like this.)

It’s drowned out by the sound of Chloe moaning in her mouth.

The door to the venue opens with a creak and voices with laughter echo into the night. The sounds immediately causes Beca to pull back and practically jump out of Chloe’s lap, scrambling two seats away from her. She’s that they’re in  _ public _ and yet she was practically on her way to having sex with Chloe.

The thought of it makes Beca’s cheeks flush a furious red as she busies herself with smoothing out her hair and avoiding eye contact with Chloe.

They both wait for the small group of people to pass before speaking.

“Beca?”

Chloe’s voice is small, unsure. Beca’s rarely heard her voice like this; it kind of worries her.

But everything is dizzy and Beca is well aware that this could be the effects of Chloe’s kissing, but more so the feeling of the alcohol in her stomach. She takes one look at Chloe and freezes for the smallest of seconds, the vulnerability clear in those ocean-like eyes, the hesitation in her lips.

Drunk or sober, Beca’s reaction is the same.

“I - bathroom, I’m going to the bathroom inside.”

She runs.

More like she quickly - as best as she can without swaying too much - walks back inside, unsure if Chloe’s calling her back or if she’s being followed. She purposefully chooses to weave through crowds of people instead of going around them to make it to the bathroom at the farthest end of the venue, not daring to take a break until she’s inside.

It’s not until she’s in the safety of a locked stall that she rests her head back against the cold metal of the stall door, fingers reaching up to her swollen lips where Chloe just was.

Beca can certainly feel the alcohol now, alone with her thoughts in a room where everything echos.

What the hell is she doing?

Stacie enters the bathroom as soon as Beca finally calms down enough to exit her stall and it only takes Stacie the slightest of glances to figure out how drunk Beca is.

“You’re definitely wasted,” Stacie comments. “Like, almost tiki-Treble wasted.”

(So maybe Beca was known to get more drunk for the annual Treble tiki party.

It may have had to do with a certain redhead and her dumb pout.

So what.)

“Thanks,” Beca deadpans, trying her best to glare, but really it looks like she’s squinting at Stacie. She continues, “Listen - I uh, I want to go back to the hotel. Like, I don’t know I just-”

“I think that’s a great idea,” Stacie says to cut her off with a chuckle. “You look like shit, dude.”

“You’re the fucking worst.”

“Where’s your girlfriend?”

“She was outside last,” Beca immediately answers. She pauses, then scowls. “That’s my fake girlfriend, by the way. You know we’re not actually dating.”

Stacie just grins. “Uh-huh.”

“Because that would be insane.”

“Would it, though?” the taller brunette asks, raising an eyebrow.

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

It comes out a little harsher than intended, Beca’s glare not helping the case at all. Stacie seems to sense the touchy subject, putting her hands up in mock surrender a moment later.

“Let’s get you water and back to your hotel room,” Stacie mutters, reaching out and grabbing Beca by the wrist.

Beca mindlessly follows Stacie, still thinking about the way Chloe feels against her lips and how at home she feels in Chloe’s embrace. The thoughts overwhelm her rather quickly and she begins to focus instead on the music blasting throughout the venue instead of Chloe, Chloe and more Chloe.

She barely registers that Stacie finds Aubrey and explains where she’s going, or the way Aubrey shoots a worried look in Beca’s direction.

“Should I get Chloe?” Aubrey asks, still eyeing the otherwise distracted Beca.

Stacie shakes her head. “Let her have fun with her family. I’ll take care of this one.”

Beca doesn’t really remember getting back to her hotel room or changing into pajamas or Stacie wiping the makeup off her face. She doesn’t remember chugging a full glass of water either, but it happens.

“Why did you drink so much, B?” Stacie asks as she settles into the chair by Beca and Chloe’s bed.

“I hate when you call me that,” Beca grumbles, sliding under the covers.

Stacie ignores her. “You only drink that much when you’re trying not to think about something.”

“Shut up.”

“I’m right,” her friend insists. “Is it work?”

Beca doesn’t answer, just glares at Stacie.

“Or…” Stacie continues, looking at Beca. “Is it Chloe?”

“Are you sure  _ you’re _ not wasted?” Beca shoots back. “Cause, like, you’re being really fucking annoying.”

“Just asking,” Stacie shrugs, feigning innocence.

“Why would I not want to think about Chloe? Chloe’s like, my best friend. I always think about her. I’m her pretend girlfriend, Stacie. I think that means I  _ have _ to think about her,” Beca rambles, now on a tangent that Stacie has no intention of stopping. “Chloe’s literally just - she’s like the greatest human and she’s so good and I...she’s just. We’re  _ fine, _ Stacie. We’re honestly just...we’re fine.”

Stacie suppresses a smirk, knowing that Beca’s unable to control what comes out of her mouth once she reaches a certain point, knows that more truth will come out even if Beca tries so hard to keep it all inside.

“Fake dating Chloe is fun, isn’t it?”

“What?” Beca makes a face. “No? I mean - I guess? It’s...I had to. Chloe needed me to so I did it.”

This time, Stacie snorts at the comment. Beca groans, a childish pout now on her face because she knows on some level Stacie’s making fun of her like her friend is aware of something Beca isn’t. 

“You like it, though?”

“Chloe’s my best friend,” Beca replies like that’s enough of an answer - like that’s the only acceptable answer.

Stacie knows she won’t get any more out of Beca tonight so she sighs. “Go to sleep, Becs. I’ll be here until Chloe and Aubs get home.”

Beca doesn’t remember Stacie placing another glass of water and a bottle of advil on the nightstand by her phone, or how Stacie makes sure she’s fully tucked in before turning off the lights and laying across the edge of the bed on her phone.

All Beca remembers is how she feels weird not having Chloe’s arms around her as she falls asleep.


	6. six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> helloooo my lovely people! Sorry it's been forever; school and season definitely got in the way. I'm happy to finally drop this update. Thank you for being endlessly patient. I'm sorry for going on MIA on this fic for awhile, but here we are!

Beca’s head is pounding and she feels like she might die at any moment if she moves too quickly. Her eyes are shut, the only time she attempted to open them leaving her almost blinded by lights.

She’s long since taken the advil left on her night stand, but it’s yet to kick in and Beca doesn’t want to think about the implications of getting up and moving for the next few hours. Thank god her flight isn’t until much later, and that there are no concrete plans set for the day.

The bathroom door opens and Beca suddenly remembers that she isn’t alone.

Chloe.

Oh no.

_ Chloe. _

“Beca?”

Her voice is soft like it always is in the morning. Beca is too afraid to open her eyes - mostly because the light is  _ so bright _ and partly because she doesn’t really want to see Chloe just yet - but she makes a noise that resembles a groan in response.

“‘m up,” she manages in a groggy voice.

Beca can hear the sound of Chloe’s feet padding into the bathroom - Beca guesses to put her towel away - and she returns back onto the carpet a moment later.

“Are you okay?” Chloe asks gently. “Do you...how are you feeling?”

“Like shit,” Beca replies almost immediately, squeezing her eyes shut and willing the advil to kick in.

She’s not sure how much more she can take between her pounding headache and Chloe’s fresh shower scent wafting towards her.

“Those drinks catching up to you, Becs?”

Beca can hear the slight tease in Chloe’s voice, the way the conversation has a light undertone and Chloe is trying not to laugh at her even though Beca knows without looking that she’s hiding her giggles behind a curtain of hair.

Beca wonders if Chloe remembers last night, if she remembers the way she kissed Beca deeply and gripped tightly to her waist. 

“You didn’t stop me,” she whines in response.

Chloe lets out a bubbly laugh. “When you’re drunk you think you’re invincible,” she reminds her best friend.

Beca only lets a tiny huff out as a response - mostly because it’s the best she can manage. It only makes Chloe laugh again, softer this time. Beca tries not to smile at the sound.

“We’re supposed to meet Aubrey and Stacie for breakfast,” Chloe reminds her gently. “But you clearly won’t be going anywhere for the next couple of hours.”

Beca notices the way Chloe quickly changes the topic. She wonders if Chloe’s doing that on purpose, if she doesn’t want to talk about last night. A thought then comes to Beca’s mind: what if Chloe thinks last night was a mistake?

The thought makes Beca feel uneasy, like she’s unsure of herself and her emotions and everything that’s happened this weekend. Then again, Beca isn’t sure she could handle having  _ that  _ conversation right now - whatever “that” would entail, anyway - since she still currently feels like she’s kind of dying.

“Go without me,” the brunette mumbles as she relaxes back into her pillow. “Painkillers haven’t kicked in yet.”

“I’ll bring you back some food,” Chloe promises in response.

Beca grunts out a response of approval before she’s curling into her side and attempting to will her pain away. She can sense Chloe’s presence by the bed, can almost sense her best friend’s hesitation before footsteps pick up again and the door opens and shuts a moment later.

It doesn’t take Beca too long to fall back into a deep sleep after that, but her mind is still filled with questions and burning memories of Chloe’s touch.

 

* * *

 

Sleep comes and goes for Beca while Chloe is gone.

Her head still hurts and she refuses to open her eyes.

As she waits to fall back asleep, Beca is aware of a few thoughts.

First, kissing Chloe is like reaching heaven.

Second, she likes being Chloe’s fake girlfriend.

And third, being with Chloe is like finding a home.

(These thoughts don’t mean much in her hungover state, but they’re there.

And they stay in the back of her mind.)

 

* * *

 

When Beca fully comes to again, it’s to the sound of Chloe moving around their hotel room to pack her belongings. Her eyes open slowly, afraid she’s going to be greeted by blinding sunlight like she was earlier that morning. Once it’s clear that her pounding headache is gone and her eyes aren’t as sensitive as they were earlier, she blinks a few times until her eyes focus on Chloe standing by their bed and dropping her toiletry bag into her luggage.

Chloe is singing under her breath, something Beca has heard countless times before. The sound of it makes Beca’s lips form a small smiles when she realizes the song is from the playlist Beca sent her a few weeks ago.

The redhead spins around to continue packing, but stops when she catches sight of Beca watching her from the bed.

“Oh hi,” Chloe greets her with a slight smile. “I didn’t realize you were up again.”

“Hi,” Beca responds, voice raspy from sleep. “How was breakfast?”

Chloe chuckles softly, sitting on the empty side of the bed and looking at Beca with an amused grin. “I got back like two hours ago,” she explains. “You’ve been out for a couple of hours now. Aubrey and Stacie said goodbye. They had to catch their flights after breakfast.”

A sense of panic spikes up in Beca and she sits up immediately. “Shit, when’s our flight?”

“Woah,” Chloe says, immediately reaching out to put a hand on Beca’s leg over the sheets. “It’s not for another few hours. We still have time.”

Beca relaxes at the words, a soft exhale coming from her lips. She looks down to her lap where Chloe’s hand is still resting on her leg and immediately thinks about the way Chloe’s fingers ran along her skin last night. Her cheeks heat up and now she’s grateful for the messy curtain of hair that hides her cheek from Chloe.

Chloe’s voice startles her slightly when she asks, “Are you feeling better?”

Beca’s head snaps up and her hair falls away from her face. She nods slowly, as if she’s afraid any sudden movement will bring back her headache from this morning.

“A lot,” she admits. “But don’t even think about bringing alcohol around me for the next two weeks.”

Chloe chuckles softly, giving Beca a cheeky look. “I thought you’d be able to keep up with me after all these years.”

Beca scoffs, playfully swatting Chloe’s hand away from her sheet-clad leg. “I’m never going to be able to keep up with you and Stacie. The two of you are like, indestructible.”

Chloe only offers a shrug, cheeky look still present on her features. “Some of us are born lucky,” she decides before sliding off the bed. “Now that your hangover is gone, start packing your things.”

Beca scrunches up her nose, tossing a pillow at Chloe. Her aim is terrible and it lands past Chloe’s feet. Chloe lets out a satisfied hum before she continues packing. Beca begins to follow suit, but she can’t ignore the uneasiness in her gut as she slides out of bed.

If Beca remembers last night despite how intoxicated she was, then Chloe  _ definitely _ has to remember. There’s no way she could’ve forgotten then.

Right?

Chloe begins to hum, moving around as she finishes collecting her belongings around the hotel room. Beca moves towards her own suitcase, picking out her clothes for their flight. She chews her lip nervously, trying to figure out what to make of this situation.

It’s Chloe that gives her a segway.

“I’m pretty sure my entire family loves you,” Chloe suddenly says, leaning over her suitcase as she zips it up.

Beca looks up from the shirt in her hands, eyes slightly wide. “Oh really?”

Chloe finishes zipping up her suitcase and turns to Beca, nodding earnestly. “Yeah.” Her lips turn into a smug smile as she adds, “They were sold on you after our third round of drinks.”

At this Beca groans, pinching the bridge of her nose. “How embarrassing was I?”

“Embarrassing enough to go on and on about how great I am.”

Chloe gives her an amused smile, one that tells Beca that she’s thinking about that exact moment, the one where Beca babbled on about Chloe to her family. Beca hardly remembers it, just knows it was happening, knows she meant every word she said and that she probably sounded a little crazy about Chloe.

Chloe’s a great person, her family probably knows that already, but Beca wanted to remind them.

Beca scowls. “I hope you said nice things about me in return, jerk.”

“Only the nicest about my fake girlfriend,” Chloe winks easily.

It’s the first time either of them have mentioned it today, and Beca blinks in surprise. It’s not like she’s forgotten - not at all - it’s just that it’s the first time they’ve openly brought it up since last night. Chloe seems unfazed though, still her typical charming and bubbly self.

“Hannah asked me how long I think you’ve been in love with me.”

Beca says it without thinking, really. The memory of her and Hannah’s brief conversation pops into her mind and she’s telling Chloe about it before she can stop herself.

“What?”

Chloe’s eyes are focused solely on Beca, packing and any other thoughts clearly the last thing on her mind now. Her vibrant eyes are wide with surprise, head tilted ever so slightly at the statement that just came from Beca’s mouth.

There might’ve been a flash of another expression in her eyes, Beca thinks. She thinks she recognizes slight panic. It comes and goes so quickly though that Beca decides she definitely imagined it because all she sees now is confusion and curiosity.

“Uh yeah,” Beca nods, now fiddling with the shirt in her hands. “We were pretty drunk by then so...yeah.”

It’s the best she can offer, suddenly trying to stumble through her statement. Beca isn’t sure what she expected Chloe’s reaction to be. Maybe Chloe would’ve laughed and made a joke or maybe Beca thought Chloe would be a little smug that her plan worked well.

After a beat of somewhat uncomfortable silence - and it’s clear that Chloe doesn’t have a response for her - Beca adds, “Guess you’re just that good of an actor, Chlo.”

Suddenly keeping eye contact with Chloe becomes too much for Beca and she tears her gaze away, instead letting her gaze fall onto the t-shirt still in her hands. Her fingers run along the fabric and she tries to avoid looking up again.

The downbeats of silence between them are weird. The air between them carries something that hasn’t been there before.

“Guess so,” Chloe murmurs so softly that Beca would’ve missed it if her ears weren’t already straining to hear a response from her best friend.

There’s something about the way Chloe’s voice sounds so far away despite being just being across the room from her that makes Beca feel like somehow this conversation is too much for them right now. She quickly scoops up the rest of her clothes and clears her throat awkwardly.

“I’m gonna...change,” Beca manages to explain, glancing up only briefly to see Chloe barely nod before she makes a beeline for the restroom.

She closes the door behind her and lets out a quiet sigh, feeling like she can breathe again. Something about Chloe’s voice made Beca uneasy, like there’s something beneath the surface that she doesn’t understand.

 

* * *

 

Chloe still holds Beca’s hand as they take off for their flight.

They listen to music together, Beca scowling when Chloe sneaks in a Taylor Swift song.

(Beca ends up mumbling along and Chloe hides a smile.)

Beca falls asleep and wakes up on Chloe’s shoulder.

Nothing has changed; this is their normal.

This is how it always is.

(Except now, Beca knows what it feels like to have Chloe look at her adoringly and what it’s like to get a taste of her lips.)

Yet somehow, Beca feels something different now.

 

* * *

 

Beca is ready for nothing more than to enter her apartment and take a nice, long shower before crawling into bed. If she’s being honest she’s not even hungry, still feeling her hangover just slightly in the way she hasn’t really been in the mood for food since waking up.

(Chloe brought her back toast and fruit from breakfast.

 

That’s all she’s really had all day.)

It’s the thought of the long shower that gives Beca the extra energy to trudge up in front of Chloe. She’s just about to announce to Chloe that she calls dibs on the shower - Chloe probably would’ve given it to her anyway - when the shrill of their Australian roommate’s voice pierces Beca’s ears.

“SHORTSTACK! CHLOE! You’re home!”

Beca holds in a wince, spotting Amy on her respective -  _ full sized _ \- bed, looking up from her phone. She’s grinning at them widely, and okay, maybe Beca missed her crazy friend just a little bit.

“Hi Ames,” Chloe greets brightly behind Beca, side stepping her best friend to go give their other roommate a hug.

Beca kind of hates how Chloe doesn’t look the slightest bit hungover and has the energy to put up with Fat Amy.

She does, however, appreciate the fact Chloe understands exactly what she needs. She can tell with the way Chloe moves quickly and with purpose towards Amy that she’s trying to keep Beca way from all the excitement that is Fat Amy. As she pulls their other friend into a hug, Beca doesn’t miss the wink Chloe gives her. Beca shoots her a grateful look towards her in response.

“Sup Ames,” she mumbles, shutting the door behind her before dumping her bags by her and Chloe’s bed.

“It’s been so lonely without the two of you around,” Amy tells them as she pulls away from Chloe’s embrace.

Beca snorts. “Don’t tell you me you actually stayed home all weekend.”

Amy ignores her, instead looking between Chloe and Beca expectantly. “Well? How was the wedding? What did everyone think of Chloe’s girlfriend?”

Beca blinks. Between the flight home and now, she’d sort of forgotten what exactly she and Chloe had been doing in Virginia this weekend. There’s a twist in her stomach as she remembers the intimate moments of the weekend, the way she swears she can still feel Chloe’s lips against hers.

It also reminds Beca about how they haven’t exactly talked about all of it, or any of it for that matter. Not making out in their hotel room or the one at the wedding. Not the way they were  _ always _ touching and how easy it was for Beca to play Chloe’s girlfriend. Not how Beca, even now, is missing Chloe’s touch despite her only being on the other side of the room, how she wants to intertwine their fingers or wrap an arm around her waist or feel the soft kiss on her forehead from Chloe.

There’s a beat where Chloe looks back at Beca only to find Beca staring at her with a slightly surprised expression. Chloe’s eyes are vibrant and almost encouraging an answer out of Beca, like she isn’t quite sure what to say.

_ Hannah asked me when Chloe realized she was in love with me. _

_ Her whole family thinks we’re in love. _

_ This was supposed to be just pretend. _

_ I’m confused on what’s going on and what Chloe thinks. _

_ I don’t know what Chloe thinks at all. _

It only lasts for less than a moment though, because Chloe is turning back to Amy with a laugh as she says, “She’s practically a Beale now.”

Amy raises an eyebrow, intrigued. “Oh really now? When’s your wedding?”

Beca rolls her eyes at the comment. “It went fine,” she adds, deciding to leave it at that.

“I want more details! I want to know about the big Bhloe weekend!”

“You didn’t miss out on much,” Beca lies. 

(She misses the way Chloe casts a sideways glance in her direction.)

“Actually,” she continues, knowing exactly what will get Amy to rest about her and Chloe. “Stacie and Aubrey are dating so yeah, you missed a lot.”

Amy’s eyes grow wide, looking to Chloe for confirmation.

“No,” she gasps.

Chloe nods vigorously as she responds, “We walked in on them making out.”

Amy’s immediately launching into a series of questions, keeping Chloe’s attention. Beca moves around quietly, grabbing her necessities for her shower before she’s sneaking towards the tub. 

Somehow, no matter what life throws at her, Chloe always knows exactly what Beca needs. She knows if it’s silence or a gentle squeeze of a hand. She knows if it’s a cheesy rom-com - that Beca would die before requesting - with wine and popcorn or if it’s just something as small as keeping Fat Amy preoccupied so Beca can find a moment to get ready for bed because she’s exhausted.

Whatever it is, Chloe always knows.

She catches Chloe’s eyes as she passes her two roommates. 

“Thank you,” Beca mouths.

Chloe offers the slightest of smiles and something about it makes Beca’s heart melt.

 

* * *

 

Beca can’t seem to fall asleep until Chloe is in bed. She senses the slight hesitation - the way Chloe takes a moment longer than usual to arrange herself under the covers and gently slide her arm around Beca’s waist like always. For the first time in what seems like ever, Chloe seems unsure of this position, the one they’ve found themselves in countless times before.

To ease Chloe’s mind - to remind her that nothing has changed (despite the fact Beca thinks  _ something _ has) - she relaxes under Chloe’s touch and even moves back just enough to where her back is pressed against Chloe’s front.

“G’night Chlo,” she manages to mumble as her eyes stay shut.

She feels Chloe relax, feels the way she exhales softly and her breath washes over the base of Beca’s own neck. Beca grows warm at the feeling, at the way Chloe curls into her.

“Good night Becs,” Chloe responds in the dark.

 

* * *

 

(Beca misses the soft and sleepy “I love you” Chloe whispers to her long after she’s fallen asleep.

She thinks she’s dreaming when she feels a kiss pressed to the base of her neck some time in the quiet hours of the morning.)

 

* * *

 

The blaring alarm that goes off in the morning causes Beca to groan. Despite the rest she got last night after promptly passing out after her shower, she’s somewhat dreading going back to work again.

Being on vacation was so  _ nice, _ even if she had to deal with a few emails here and there.

“Beca, get up or you won’t have time for breakfast.”

Chloe’s voice floats across the room to her, and Beca’s scowl softens because she knows when she opens her eyes she’ll find Chloe at the stove, making them scrambled eggs with toast and bacon. She knows Chloe will also make her coffee before her own tea and that they’ll sit together at their tiny table in the kitchen and eat quietly like they always do.

This is their normal; they are still the same Beca and Chloe they were before Virginia.

Chloe doesn’t seem to have any intention of making things weird or talking about it again, so Beca won’t either.

Instead, she groans again before hitting her phone to shut off the alarm and practically drops out of her bed.

And the morning  _ is _ normal: Beca brushes her teeth, gets dressed, fixes her hair, does her makeup and attempts to shake Amy to wake her up - it doesn’t work - all while Chloe finishes up breakfast.

They sit together and Beca hums her praise when Chloe slides over a mug filled with coffee filled with one cream and two sugars, just how she likes it. It’s a comfortable silence that washes over them as they eat their breakfast, much like it is every morning. Fat Amy is still sound asleep on her bed with no intention of waking up and Beca is slowly waking up with every sip of coffee she has.

Beca thinks she can do this, thinks that this is just fine. Sure, she has a lot of questions about exactly what happened this weekend and why she can’t stop thinking about the fact she actually enjoyed pretending to be Chloe’s girlfriend, but at least nothing’s gotten weird yet.

And yeah, maybe there’s something different between them, something that Beca can’t quite place.

But if she’s being quite honest, she’s terrified of losing Chloe. Chloe’s her best friend and probably like, Beca’s favorite person in the world. She knows Chloe like the back of her hand, and she doesn’t want to do anything to push Chloe away, to freak her out or have her be weird because  _ Beca _ got carried away with their weekend of pretend.

So she’ll take this over nothing.

She’ll take anything over the possibility of losing one of the most important people in her life.

Beca’s still mulling over this fact as she grabs her purse for work and slips on her shoes, headphones hanging around her neck. She’s about to make her way to the door when Chloe’s voice pulls her out of her thoughts.

“Don’t forget your lunch.”

She lifts her head to see Chloe placing a tupperware container on the counter with a knowing smile and a teasing look in her eyes.

“I wasn’t going to,” Beca insists with a small pout, but Chloe’s eyes are filled with light and Beca can tell she’s holding back a giggle.

“Sure,” Chloe hums, clearly not believing her.

“Jerk,” Beca says, shaking her head as she walks over to her best friend.

“A thank you would be nice,” Chloe teases lightly, raising an eyebrow in a playful manner.

Beca rolls her eyes dramatically and replies, “Fine.  _ Thank you  _ for reminding me about my lunch today, Chloe. What would I ever do without you?”

Chloe lets out a soft snort at Beca’s monotone response. She adjusts Beca’s blazer, tugging at the bottom to let it rest on Beca’s shoulders just right.

“Have a good day at work, Becs.”

And Chloe always tells her to have a good day at work, but this time is different.

“Thanks,” she murmurs, a hand reaching over and grabbing the tupperware on the counter. 

This time there is something palpable between them, something that Beca was sure they had left in Virginia. She can’t tell if it’s the way Chloe’s eyes are soft when they look at her, or if it’s the way that Chloe’s voice is gentle and full of affection. She thinks it also might have to do with the way Chloe’s fingers still rest against her blazer, keeping Beca close to her.

“I should go,” Beca announces, her voice barely above a whisper.

Even though her words say one thing, Beca can’t quite pull herself away from Chloe and her bright blue eyes. They’re mesmerising still after all this time, so mesmerising that Beca thinks she’s somewhat trapped under Chloe’s gentle gaze.

“Okay,” Chloe nods despite her hands still holding Beca’s blazer.

This time Beca isn’t sure how it happens.

Her brain is kind of fuzzy.

(Because of Chloe Beale.)

She means to just drop the tupperware in her bag and give Chloe one last smile. She means to give Chloe a dumb look before she heads out the door and slip her headphones on. She has every intention of leaving like she does everyday, with Chloe watching her go with a bright smile before she gets ready for her own job.

None of those things happen.

Instead, Beca leans forward just the slightest bit and very much presses a kiss right next to Chloe’s lips. It lingers for nothing more than moment before she’s shooting back with wide eyes because-

_ What the fuck is she doing? _

(For a moment, Beca considers committing. She considers going for Chloe’s lips instead - Beca isn’t quite sure where she was originally aiming for, if she’s being honest - and melting in the way Chloe fits her like a missing piece of a puzzle.

However, this consideration only lasts for a fraction of a second because Beca is afraid and unsure.)

The action clearly catches Chloe by surprise, the shock and confusion beginning to make way onto her features. Her eyes mirror Beca’s, wide and unbelieving and her mouth falls open in surprise.

Beca takes a step back in a jerking motion, hardly even noticing the way Chloe’s hands simply drop to her sides without a fight. She begins to walk backwards towards the front door in haste. Her mouth opens, but no words come - they can’t. She has no idea what to say. She’s also carefully watching Chloe to see her expression is starting to look more confused by the second.

“Bec-” Chloe begins, her voice somewhat startling the both of them in the awkward silence.

But Beca is too afraid to let her finish.

“See you!” Beca calls out in a high-pitched voice that’s probably going to wake up their other roommate before she bolts out the door which slams loudly behind her.

She knows Chloe won’t follow her out, but she does a hybrid speed walk-jog all the way out of their apartment complex and doesn’t slow down until she reaches the stairs to the subway. She’s trying to catch her breath as the panic begins to reside and the realization settles in.

Beca practically kissed Chloe in their apartment as if it was normal.

There was no sense of pretend behind it, no one they were trying to fool, not even the guise of the weekend to hide any illogical argument.

Beca kissed Chloe as if it was the most natural thing to do.

The thought frightens her.


	7. seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well hi! I know...it's been a very long time coming. I apologize, but I now present to you the final chapter of this fic :)))) I'd like to thank my friends Theresa, Jordan, and Velms for helping me bounce ideas and figure out where I've been stuck over the course of this story. I really appreciate y'all.

“Beca, did you hear me?”

Beca’s head snaps up as her boss catches her attention. She’d been zoned out really, eyes falling on her fingers dumbly drumming along to the beat they’d been playing over the speakers on the fabric of her black jeans.

“I’m sorry, what was that?” she responds immediately.

“Do you think we should add more of a bass in those last five seconds we just listened to?”

Beca blinks and after a pause she nods. “Uh yeah, a little more bass would be great actually.”

Except she doesn’t even really know if there should be more bass for that part of the track. In fact, she can’t even name the track they’re currently listening to. She’s been out of it all morning, since she walked out the door and made her way to work.

Or more specifically, when she almost kissed Chloe on her way out.

If Beca’s being honest, she’s completely mortified by the whole incident. She keeps thinking about just how shocked Chloe looked, how her bright blue eyes were wide and too slow too understand. She can still hear the way Chloe tried to say her name, tried to get out something - anything - before Beca took off running.

Beca thinks she’s starting to get good at that: running from Chloe.

She did it in Virginia, wasted and drunk off Chloe’s touch.

She’s just done it again this morning.

By the time her lunch break rolls around, Beca has no work done and also hasn’t heard from Chloe at all - not even a snapchat - so she calls the one person who probably won’t think she’s absolutely insane.

_ “This better be good, I’m just about to leave the lab for lunch.” _

Beca lets out a silent sigh of relief at the sound of her friend’s voice, the slight tease in her tone.

“You won’t believe what I did this morning,” Beca rushes out. “God, Stace, I’m a fucking idiot.”

_ “What, did you spill coffee all over yourself?”  _ Stacie snorts.  _ “Because I can totally believe that.” _

Beca can hear the smirk in her words, but chooses to ignore them. She’s been on edge all morning.

“I kissed Chloe,” she blurts out quickly. “I mean - well, kind of. We...I kissed the spot right next to her mouth.”

Something about saying it out loud makes Beca simultaneously feel relieved but want to cringe. The relief might take percent though after she’s spent days dancing around the subject of being intimate with Chloe, when it was all just pretend - or at least that’s what it was always supposed to be.

_ “Wait, so you guys weren’t actually dating this whole time?” _

Beca lets out an irritated groan as Stacie laughs not even a moment later. She scowls as if Stacie can see her.

“Not funny Conrad,” Beca snaps.

She can practically see Stacie’s devilishly cheeky smile as she responds,  _ “It was a little.” _

“I don’t know why I called you,” Beca mutters, irritation evident in her tone.

_ “Okay okay,” _ Stacie says, clearing her throat.  _ “So you kind of kissed Chloe. So what?” _

Beca’s eyes grow wide. “So what?” She sputters. “What do you mean  _ ‘so what’ _ ? I just kind of kissed  _ Chloe!” _

_ “Yeah, you were kissing her all weekend if I remember correctly.” _

The smugness drips off Stacie’s words and Beca wishes Stacie was in front of her so she could see the glare on her face.

“Because we were pretending to date!” Beca exclaims. “This morning, we weren’t! And I decided to be a total freak!”

_ “Or you were doing what’s natural,” _ Stacie sing-songs.

“Stacie.”

Stacie chuckles softly, but finally relents her teasing. “ _ Honestly Bec, this is weird because you’re making it weird. So you kissed Chloe - it happens. But if I were you, I’d re-evaluate how you feel about Chloe, especially after this weekend.” _

Beca twists her lips. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

_ “Listen Bec, I need to get lunch before my break is over,” _ Stacie sighs.  _ “I honestly think you’re overreacting. Just chill, maybe.” _

“You were no help at all,” Beca grumbles.

_ “I just think you don’t want to hear what you need to hear. Love you, weirdo. Say hi to your girlfriend for me.” _

“Stacie!” Beca whines, but she hears Stacie end the call and lets out a groan.

“Fucking useless,” she mutters as she glares at her phone.

 

* * *

 

Beca’s hoping that Chloe isn’t home for some reason. Beca had taken her sweet time leaving work today, insisting she could stay to work on something -  _ anything _ \- before her boss was insisting she should go home. When asked if she was okay, Beca was quick to nod and force a smile, making up some excuse about how being away for the weekend drove her insane.

(She doesn’t mention the anxiety that’s been riding her all day, the knot in her stomach that’s grown bigger with each passing hour knowing that she’ll go home to Chloe - Chloe that she kissed.)

Maybe Chloe got called in for an emergency at the clinic, or she decided to go run errands or watch a movie. 

Her hopes are to no avail though as she opens the door to their apartment to find Chloe, as usual, sprawled out on the bed, laptop in front of her. Chloe’s head turns at the sound of her coming in and she pauses for a moment.

(There’s usually never a beat between Beca entering and Chloe welcoming her home.)

“Hi,” Chloe finally says after the almost unbearable pause. “How was work?”

Beca manages a shrug, pulling off her boots as she drops her bag by the front door. She notices that Fat Amy is nowhere to be seen, but that’s usually how it always is with her.

“Fine,” she responds, not quite looking at Chloe. “Just hard to jump back in after being gone all weekend.”

Chloe lets out a non-committal hum, eyes turning back to her laptop and whatever she’s got pulled up.

It’s awkward and somewhat tense in the apartment, but Beca finally thinks she’s found herself in the clear, that this will be another  _ thing _ she and Chloe sweep under the rug, that it’s been added to the growing pile of events they both know happened, but refuse to talk about.

Beca thinks she can be okay with that, that she’ll be okay with it as long as Chloe is still right next to her, still her best friend.

“Are we not going to talk about it?”

Beca’s stomach drops at the sound of Chloe’s question. She tries to remain unbothered, tries to pretend like this isn’t what she thinks it is.

“Talk about what?” she asks, feigning innocence.

Her voice is steady and nonchalant, but she knows it’s only because her back is to Chloe. She keeps it that way, thinks if she acts like it’s nothing then Chloe will drop it.

After all, isn’t that what they did all weekend?

“You know what.”

Beca does it before she can think about it, really. She turns and faces Chloe, quirking an eyebrow up in habit.

Chloe raises both eyebrows at her from the bed, where she’s now sitting up.

“You kissed me before you left this morning.”

Beca feels whole body tense when she processes the words that leave Chloe’s mouth. It was one thing to hear herself say it out loud; it’s a completely different experience to hear  _ Chloe _ say it.

And it’s not like it’s an accusation of any sort. There’s no malice or ill-will behind Chloe’s words, none of that at all. She just states it as it is: an honest fact. Chloe looks at her with those big, blue eyes and a slight twist of her lips. Beca knows she’s waiting for her response - that Chloe’s  _ expecting _ a response, but Beca is really just at a loss for words.

“Beca?” Chloe prompts after too long of a silence between them.

Beca blinks, racking her mind for something to say.

“I just - you know we spent the whole weekend pretending to date,” she begins, her ramblings tumbling out of her before she can really understand it. “And like, I was so tired this morning I just wasn’t thinking. I totally didn’t mean to, you know, kiss you or whatever.”

Chloe nods slowly, eyes wide and full of understanding. Beca inwardly breathes a sigh of relief; this wasn’t the reaction she was expecting - honestly, she wasn’t sure what she was expecting - but she’ll roll with this.

“Right,” Chloe says slowly, as if she’s afraid the wrong response will send Beca running out the door.

(Honestly, it might.)

“So, you know,” Beca continues, the short moment of silence between them causing her to fill the air because she just might explode. “We can totally pretend that didn’t happen. Like, it won’t happen again. Just a momentary lapse, or whatever.”

She’s so busy rambling that she doesn’t notice the look that flashes through Chloe’s eyes, like something clicks in her mind. By the time she finally looks at Chloe again, racking her brain for something else to say because she just feels  _ weird _ and doesn’t want to have this conversation, the redhead is nodding more confidently now, an easy smile on her lips.

“Of course Bec,” Chloe shrugs. “It happens. You were just ignoring me all day.”

“I wasn’t,” Beca immediately defends herself.

Chloe quirks an eyebrow, but there’s that playful glint in her eye and Beca knows she’s not actually mad.

“Just got busy,” Beca reasons.

Chloe’s smile widens. “You know I’m just teasing,” she promises, sliding off the bed. “Come on, I’ll order Chinese takeout for dinner.”

Before Beca can respond, Chloe is already grabbing her phone and calling up their favorite place for Chinese takeout.

She figures she should be relieved that it wasn’t a big deal at all, that Chloe decided to be Chloe in her most innate way - a smile and a shrug and a go-with-the-flow type deal. Because after all, isn’t that what Beca wanted?

(Yet somehow, Beca feels almost disappointed that there isn’t more to this, that Chloe didn’t push her harder into it, that she took Beca’s ramblings as truth.

She doesn’t care to examine this, though. She’s almost afraid to.)

They eat Chinese takeout and watch a few episodes of a Netflix show and Chloe is totally  _ fine. _

Beca doesn’t understand why she can’t be like her, why something about this bothers her.

(Deep down, she probably knows the answer.

She also thinks about her conversation with Stacie.)

 

* * *

 

Stacie Conrad   
_ iMessage _   
Yesterday, 11:23 PM

Hey loser, are you and Chloe dating yet? ;))))

wtf no why would you say that

…   
Did you not just kiss her this morning?

first of all, i ALMOST did and second, no it was just like a weird thing   
it was an accident we talked when i got home

God. You’re an idiot

???   
i don’t get what you want from me. we’re not in love like u think

Right…

ugh. good night i’m going to bed.

 

* * *

 

Things go back to normal shortly after.

Beca still curls into Chloe at night. Chloe still makes them breakfast in the mornings and smiles when Beca comes home. Chloe teases and laughs and is still  _ Chloe _ and Beca thinks they’ve found their normal again.

She feels like she can look at Chloe without thinking about how they spent a whole weekend pretending to date, that Beca hadn’t kissed her in ways that she misses being so innately intimate with her best friend.

And Beca tells herself that this is for the best. This is how she and Chloe are always going to be, and that’s how it’s  _ supposed _ to be.

It’s all fine until about a week later when Beca’s rushing off to work and Chloe hands her a travel mug of coffee. It’s not out of the ordinary, not by any means, but what throws Beca off is the fact Chloe kisses her cheek as she places the mug in her hands.

“Have a good day,” Chloe beams right after, pulling away from Beca to give her that lopsided smile.

Beca blinks, unsure if she’s imagined it, but Chloe seems completely normal and Beca can still feel the kiss against her cheek.

“Thanks,” she stammers out before scurrying out the door.

After finally coming down from her momentary panic, Beca decides that Chloe might’ve had a lapse similar to her own a little over a week ago. She figures it’s not a big deal, and plus, Chloe has always been more affectionate than pretty much any other person Beca has met in her entire life. It’s just another weird Chloe thing she’ll roll with.

Chloe snapchats her a photo of one of her pet patients later that day like nothing’s happened and Beca responds with a photo of her soundboard and everything is  _ fine. _

Except Chloe kisses her cheek  _ again _ the next morning paired with that stupid lopsided smile that makes Beca’s heart do stupid things. It becomes a thing - practically routine, Chloe sending her off with coffee, her lunch, and a sweet and quick kiss to her cheek. It feels so insanely domestic, but Beca finds she doesn’t mind at all.

Most times, she’s too caught off guard to actually say anything about it, and by the time she gets home, the moment is so far away that Beca can’t find it in herself to say anything or question Chloe’s actions.

It’s a few days later when Beca starts finding little post-it notes stuck on top of her tupperware for lunch every day. They’re always a different color each day - Beca guesses it’s whatever Chloe can find first while Beca is sleeping or showering - and they have words scribbled in Chloe’s handwriting that make Beca smile without fail.

_ You are doing so many amazing things! _

_ Can’t wait to hear what you’re working on. I know it’s gonna be good. _

_ You are so so talented. Please never forget that. _

_ I’m lucky I get to do life with you, superstar. _

Each little post-it note is so Chloe that Beca can hear her voice in her head. She starts sticking them onto the wall above her desk at work, and it doesn’t take long for her to start a collection. When she asks Chloe about it, the redhead only shrugs.

“I guess I figured you could use a midday pick me up. I know work is getting busy.”

Beca wonders how she’s managed to gather enough good karma to have Chloe in her life.

One of the interns walks into her office one day and sees the growing post-it note wall above her desk.

He smiles at Beca and says, “Those are cute. Did your girlfriend write them?”

Beca’s eyes widen as she stutters, “My, uh, my what?”

The intern’s smile falters just a little, but he points to the post-it notes on the wall anyway as he explains, “The little notes?”

“Oh,” Beca swallows, looking from the wall to the intern, who probably thinks Beca is an idiot. “These are...they’re not..They’re from my roommate. She’s like, my best friend. We’ve been friends since college or whatever.”

She tells herself to shut up and averts her gaze from the intern. He  _ definitely _ thinks she’s an idiot now. When she looks back at him, he’s nodding slowly, but not like he completely believes her.

“Right,” he draws out. “Well uh, I’m going to just...get these to Marketing.”

Beca gives him her attempt at a not-awkward smile. “Great, thanks.”

He walks out of the room, looking between the wall and Beca one more time as he goes.

Beca lets out a long sigh after he leaves, looking up at the wall. She frowns, wondering why on earth he’d assume these were like, love letters or something. She peers at the notes, skimming them, but she can’t find anything that would give that impression; all she finds are pieces of Chloe up on her wall, positive and supportive, and somehow  _ warm _ even though it’s words scribbled onto a piece of paper.

 

* * *

 

Beca tries not to think too hard about the little things Chloe does for her, but it’s starting to get difficult when things keep happening.

It’s not like Chloe’s being weird or doing anything completely out of the ordinary for Chloe Beale, but it’s just...different.

Like when Chloe takes Beca out to her favorite pizza place on a Wednesday night after Beca comes home from work all grumpy and talking about how her boss really fucking sucks sometimes.

“Seriously?” Beca asks when Chloe suggests pizza, watching the redhead pull on a jacket. “You hate going there.”

Chloe nods with a genuine look on her face. “I’ll even drink beer for you.”

It makes Beca laugh, and though she doesn’t get it because Chloe  _ hates _ going to Beca’s favorite pizza place because the wait is long, even for a Wednesday night, and she knows Chloe’s rounds were exhausting today by her snapchats she’d sent sporadically during her shift, but she goes along with it anyway.

She’ll always go along with it for Chloe.

(Seriously, hasn’t Chloe noticed by now?)

The line isn’t terrible when they arrive, and Chloe teases that maybe it’s a good thing Beca came home from work so late. While they wait, Chloe tiredly leans against Beca, telling her about today’s patients and about the fact she’s beginning to think about seriously owning a miniature pig as a pet.

“I would kick you out if you did,” Beca informs her with a half-hearted scowl.

“Amy would let me stay,” Chloe points out.

Beca snorts. “Amy’s not home enough to even notice if we even  got a pet.”

The comment makes Chloe laugh, soft and tired right next to Beca’s ear. Beca tries to ignore the way the pit of her stomach warms at the sound, at how  _ close _ Chloe’s lips are to her ear. It’s then that Chloe’s hand slips her into hers, fingers sliding into the open spaces between Beca’s so seamlessly that Beca doesn’t even notice until Chloe starts talking about something else and Beca is left wondering how long they’ve been holding hands at this point.

She thinks she should pull away, but holding hands with Chloe has always kind of been the norm. Plus, Chloe’s hand fits flawlessly in hers; it’s like her hands have found a perfect match in Chloe’s.

Beca’s musings are interrupted once they finally find themselves in front of the hostess, who smiles and leads them to a table. Chloe doesn’t pull away from Beca until they reach the table, fingers slipping out of Beca’s grasp gently as she takes the seat across from her best friend.

(Beca tries not to miss the feeling of Chloe’s hand in hers too much.)

And Beca hates herself for even thinking this, but it almost feels like a date.

They laugh and talk over pizza and beers like Chloe promised. Beca almost forgets about her grueling day at the studio, instead focusing on the way Chloe’s eyes are full of light and her smile is still bright even in the dim lighting of this pizza joint. She soaks in Chloe’s laugh, how sometimes it’s loud and filled with pure joy and other times it’s soft and hiding behind the lips of her beer bottle.

Beca lets herself immerse herself in everything that is Chloe Beale, and she finds herself mesmerized by the person sitting in front of her.

Chloe looks at her like she’s the only thing that matters in the world, and Beca knows there’s no way she’d ever want to let Chloe go.

(For a moment Beca wonders if this goes beyond friendship.

She then tells herself she’s being ridiculous and blames it on the stress and the beer.)

When Beca tries to pay, Chloe is quick to smack her hand away.

“Ow!” Beca yelps, a pout forming her lips.

Chloe is quick to slam her credit card down onto the bill and hand it to the waiter passing by.

“My treat, seriously,” Chloe insists with a smile.

Beca rolls her eyes and grumbles, “Damn persistent ginger.”

Chloe quirks an eyebrow at her knowingly as she finishes off her beer.

They walk home on a cool, New York night. Beca knows Chloe is still somewhat in awe of this place after the past few years of living here. New York has never been a destination Beca had in mind growing up, but she loves the way Chloe soaks it all in every single time.

Chloe loops an arm through Beca’s own arm and leans close the whole way home. She smells like greasy pizza and beer, but Beca doesn’t mind at all considering she probably smells the same.

Chloe lets out a yawn when they’re a block away from their apartment and Beca chuckles softly  at her.

“Is it past your bedtime?” she teases.

Chloe rolls her eyes and lightly hip checks her, arms still looped together. “Shut up, I just bought you dinner.”

Beca smiles softly, looking at her best friend. “You really didn’t have to, Chlo.”

“You’re my favorite person,” Chloe sighs contentedly, leaning over to press a kiss to the top of Beca’s head. “I don’t mind at all.”

The gesture doesn’t shock Beca all that much considering Chloe now kisses her cheek every morning like clockwork, but it’s the words that get her. Chloe’s always been open and honest with her, but somehow this words seem different. There’s something in the air that shifts and Beca can’t quite place it.

She looks up to see their apartment building just a few feet away.

“I hope the next person that dates you knows how lucky they are,” Beca blurts out before she can even really think about it.

Chloe looks at her for a long moment. Beca suddenly feels uncomfortably close to the redhead, like she’s so close that all of their secrets are going to start pouring out at any moment.

(But what secrets do they even have?

They’re best friends. They tell eachother everything.

Beca knows deep down that’s a lie.)

“Yeah, I hope so.”

Before Beca can continue the conversation, Chloe’s tugging her into their building and up to their room.

 

* * *

 

It starts out as any other week day.

Chloe and Beca have breakfast while Amy is fast asleep - and surprisingly home - before Beca’s pulling on her shoes and scrambling to get ready before she runs late. She gets her lunch - which Beca knows has a sticky note inside waiting for her - and a kiss on the cheek from Chloe.

Beca doesn’t question it anymore; she expects it, just like she expects Chloe to hold her hand and say nice things to her all the time.

(She’s definitely let Chloe come and tear all her personal boundary walls down over the years.

Stupid redhead with her puppy pout and lopsided smile.)

Chloe has the day off so Beca knows she’ll be running errands for most of the day while Beca holes herself up in the studio and listens to mixes and works with new artists and just hopes that her client isn’t some brat teenager who thinks he knows it all.

Chloe texts her just as she’s getting ready to leave for work, and Beca opens it as soon as her boss gives her the thumbs up on the latest version of the demo they’ve been working on for the better part of the week.

 

* * *

 

Chloe Beale   
_ iMessage _   
Today 6:50 PM

Hey   
I made you a playlist   
Listen to it on the way home?

 

* * *

 

After Chloe’s string of texts is a link to a Spotify playlist and Beca smiles. It’s been awhile since Chloe’s put together a playlist and right now she’s glad that it’s not named something stupid like “boppin’ pop songs” - which, yes, Chloe made that playlist a few months ago. It’s simply titled “becs, my fave person.”

(There definitely  _ isn’t _ a warm and somewhat fuzzy feeling that rises inside of Beca when she reads the title. Not at all.)

Beca shoots her a reply promising that she will and follows through with her promise once she’s packed her things and says goodbye to her intern of the day and assures her boss that the demo has been sent over to their client before walking out.

As soon as she’s in the elevator, she’s pulling her headphones on and opening Chloe’s playlist. She doesn’t even bother looking at the songs Chloe’s put on there, deciding she’ll listen as she goes in order.

She has to admit she’s kind of surprised when the first song that plays is Just a Dream followed by Just the Way You Are.

Beca loses herself in the music, random memories flashing into her mind as each song plays. There’s something that grows in the pit of her stomach the longer she listens, something that makes her listen to the words and not the beat. It’s not surprising to her that they’re love songs - Chloe  _ loves _ love songs - it’s just that every song has at least one line that strikes her, something that gives her the impression this isn’t just a playlist Chloe has thrown together.

She’s biting her lip raw by the time she approaches their apartment, anxiety beginning to rise because these songs aren’t just songs Chloe likes. Each one has a meaning and Beca thinks she’s catching on.

The playlist ends just as Beca arrives at her floor, but she keeps her headphones on and walks in deafening silence to her door. She exhales softly before she twists the key and enters.

Chloe is stirring up a cup of tea by the kitchen. Her head snaps up as soon as the door opens, eyes meeting Beca’s right away.

Beca pauses when she catches Chloe’s gaze. She manages to shut the door behind her before sparing a glance only to confirm that Amy isn’t home.

“Hey,” she greets, slipping off her headphones and placing them on the nearest table along with her bag.

“Welcome home,” Chloe hums over her tea, bringing it up to her lips gently.

“So uh,” Beca begins, hovering in the space between their bed and the door. “Your playlist.”

Chloe blinks, looking at Beca curiously as she puts her mug down. “My playlist,” she repeats. “You listened?”

Beca nods. “I listened.”

Chloe bites her lip. “And?”

There’s a pause and Beca considers playing dumb. She could tell Chloe that she liked the playlist, but it was a little sappy for her taste. She could say she  thought it was good to listen to on the way home and leave it at that. She could say all of these things, but something about the way Chloe looks at her with baited breath makes her think better of it.

Chloe’s always had a way of getting Beca to stop deflecting.

“The songs - they weren’t just songs you threw together.”

Chloe shakes her head, taking a cautious step towards Beca as she confirms, “They weren’t.”

Music has been their second language even long before they knew each other.

Chloe hums songs under her breath, and if it’s not a song she’s just listened to it’s one that reflects her mood. Chloe listens to her female pop playlist when she’s getting ready for a date. She listens to Sam Smith when she’s sad and usually just ended things with a guy she was really into. She listens to old songs they used in performances when she’s getting ready for a Bellas reunion.

Beca turns to music when nothing else makes sense. She creates new mixes to reflect her emotions, listens to songs for the beats and the artistry and sometimes the words, but she’s most at home with her keypad and her mixing equipment at her fingertips. She loves finding underground artists, is able to find the ones who really know what they’re doing and the emotions they pull from their work. She pulls from different genres and layers them to create exactly what she wants to say when words fail her.

So it’s no surprise that Beca’s next question is, “Are you trying to tell me something, Chloe?”

Soft laugher escapes Chloe lips as she approaches Beca and answers, “I think I’ve been trying to tell you something for a long time now.”

Beca ponders Chloe’s answer as she tilts her head curiously at the redhead. She thinks of the morning kisses on the cheek, the letters, the pizza night they had. She thinks back even further, back to the soft touches and lingering glances, the way Chloe was so intimate and gentle with her even without the prying eyes of her family. She thinks about Stacie always teasing and Aubrey always looking at Beca as if she’s some kind of idiot.

She thinks of Chloe being there for her at the end of every day, wrapping her up in her arms as they fall asleep.

“You felt it all too,” Beca states out loud, her heart hammering so loudly against her chest. “Everything. It wasn’t...It wasn’t pretend.”

Chloe stands in front of Beca now, a nervous smile on her face. “Is that why you kept running away from me?”

Beca’s mouth falls open at Chloe’s accusation, and she wants to defend herself and say  _ no _ she wasn’t running away, but she knows Chloe’s right. The night of the wedding, the accidental kiss in their kitchen - Beca’s been afraid it’s too good to be true.

Her reaction makes Chloe grin, wide and lopsided in the way that Beca has etched in her memory. The redhead reaching out and tugs Beca by her belt loop. Beca is too dumbfounded to make a sound, anything she could’ve said melts away when Chloe’s lips meet hers.

This isn’t the first time they’ve kissed and they both know it, both know the kisses they disguised under the pretense of keeping up appearances, of saying this is what fake girlfriends do, but this kiss is real and honest. They’re kissing in the quiet of their apartment and for the first time, Beca doesn’t run. Instead she kisses Chloe back with a new fervor in her, trying to convey what words have always failed.

That it’s always been Chloe; it always will be Chloe.

Beca is all but breathless when she pulls away after what seems like hours later, unable to help the smile she mirrors from Chloe. Chloe looks at her like she’s the best thing in the world, and Beca knows she’s definitely not, but Chloe has always seen the best in her. Chloe looks at her the way she does every day, this time just with less reserve; there’s no reason to hold back anymore.

“A playlist, huh?”

Chloe beams. “I had to make our fake dating story real somehow.”

Beca snorts. “I’m the one who’s supposed to make it, you know.”

Chloe wraps an arm around her and rests her forehead against Beca’s, still trying to catch her breath.

“Stacie thought I should move things along.”

Beca groans, throwing her head back playfully.

“Stacie’s the worst.”

Chloe giggles, pulling Beca closer into her until their fronts are pressed up against each other. She leaves a soft kiss on Beca’s shoulder.

“I think we’ll have to thank her for this.”

Beca rolls her eyes, her arms coming up to wrap around Chloe’s shoulders.

“You’re the biggest dork, you know that?”

Chloe grins, looking at Beca with those expressive blue eyes.

“Yeah, but my dorkiness has won you over, hasn’t it?”

“You won me over a long time ago, Chlo.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, so sorry about how long it took for me to find a way to bring this story al together. I knew the ending all along, I just had to figure out how to get Beca and Chloe there ;)
> 
> Find me on tumblr @backtobasicbellas


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